Ola Cabs will transition to using its proprietary Ola Maps instead of Google Maps, as announced by Ola founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal on X (formerly Twitter). This move is projected to save the company ₹100 crore.
After Azure exit last month, we’ve now fully exited google maps. We used to spend ₹100 cr a year but we’ve made that 0 this month by moving completely to our in house Ola maps! Check your Ola app and update if needed 😉
Also, Ola maps API available on @Krutrim cloud! Many more… pic.twitter.com/wYj1Q1YohO
— Bhavish Aggarwal (@bhash) July 5, 2024
Aggarwal highlighted in his post, “We used to spend ₹100 cr a year but we’ve made that 0 this month by moving completely to our in-house Ola maps!”
Ola Maps is set to introduce several new features soon, including street view, NERFs, indoor images, 3D maps, and drone maps. It will be hosted on Krutrim cloud.
Krutrim, Ola’s AI subsidiary, recently achieved unicorn status since its establishment in December last year. It launched Krutrim cloud services in May, with 2,500 developers already signed up.
Prior to this transition, Ola had ceased using Microsoft’s Azure cloud service last month, opting instead for its own Krutrim cloud storage. This decision followed Microsoft-owned LinkedIn’s removal of Aggarwal’s post concerning pronoun usage.
Ola had been relying on Microsoft’s Azure for seven years, starting in 2017.
Ola’s strategic direction includes vertical integration, where the company controls its own supply chain rather than depending on external suppliers. Alongside these moves, Ola is investing in research on solid-state batteries for its electric scooters, aiming for implementation by next year.