The picture of competition in India’s online cab/bike booking market is changing rapidly. Uber’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dara Kho Kho Kho Kho Kho Kho Kho Kho Khooshahi said that his company is getting the largest competition in India, not from Ola, but from Rapido. Khosaroshahi made this statement during a conversation in the podcast ‘People by WTF’ by Jirodha co-founder Nikhil Kamat. Khosaroshahi said clearly, “Earlier, Ola was the biggest competition for us, but now the real challenge is giving Rapido.”
Rapido with Bangalore Chiefiyal started its business in 2015 as a bike-tax aggregator. But over time the company expanded its services and now it has also landed in auto-rickshaws and cab categories. Rapido claims that it is present in more than 100 cities of the country and the company is preparing for aggressive expansion with the help of recently found new funding.
Experts believe that Rapido’s focus on two and three wheel services has given him great popularity among travelers who are sensitive about the price. After the epidemic, when people were looking for affordable options, Rapido redeemed the same emptiness.
Ola status and challenges
Ola is considered to be in India’s ride—hilling industry, but its situation has weakened in recent years. Ola’s ride-lueling business is shrinking and the company is now mostly focused on its electric vehicle branch ‘Ola Electric.
Ani Technologies reduced its net loss to Rs 328.5 crore in FY 2024, which was Rs 772.2 crore last year. However, the company’s revenue also declined during this period. The revenue of Ola declined to Rs 1,906 crore in FY 2024 on a standalone basis, which was Rs 2,135 crore last year. At the same time, its parent company’s consolidated revenue also fell from last year’s ₹ 2,277 crore to ₹ 2,203 crore.
Ola is now betting on its EV branch, which entered the stock market in the year 2024 and is investing heavily in its scooter lineup and battery Gigafctor.
The size of India’s Ride-Heling Market is said to be around $ 13 billion and the demand here is continuously increasing.