Microsoft and Grab announced a strategic partnership that will transform the delivery of digital services and mobility in the region by leveraging Microsoft’s expertise in machine learning and other artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
“This partnership signals a deep collaboration with Microsoft on an array of technology projects, including big data and artificial intelligence that will transform the delivery of everyday services and mobility solutions in Southeast Asia. As a global technology leader, Microsoft’s investment into Grab highlights our position as the leading homegrown technology player in the region. We look forward to collaborating with Microsoft in the pursuit of enhancing on-demand transportation and seamless online-tooffline experiences for users.” said Ming Maa, President of Grab.
“Our partnership with Grab opens up new opportunities to innovate in both a rapidly evolving industry and growth region. We’re excited to team up to transform the customer experience as well as enhance the delivery of digital services for the millions of users who rely on Grab for safe and affordable transport, food and package delivery, mobile payments, and financial services,” said Peggy Johnson, Executive Vice President at Microsoft.
As a first step in the collaboration, Grab will adopt Microsoft Azure as its preferred cloud platform and Microsoft will make a strategic investment in Grab. These companies will explore a number of innovative technology projects that will enhance and transform the Grab experience for users, driver-partners, merchants and agents. These will include mobile facial recognition with built-in AI to improve safety and security of passenger and driver, fraud detection services for prevention fraudulent transactions on Grab’s platform, AI chatbot for Grab users’ interactive experiences, image recognition and computer vision technologies to improve the pickup experience of the user and driver.
