The most popular food delivery and ride-hailing app in Southeast Asia, Grab, announced that it is laying off 1,000 employees, or 11% of its workforce.
The boss of the business claimed that in order to lower costs and maintain long-term affordability of services, the cuts were required.
In eight Southeast Asian nations, the Singapore-based company provides deliveries, rides, and financial services.
In 2018, Grab took over the regional operations of rival Uber, based in the US.
The biggest cuts since the start of the coronavirus pandemic were not "a shortcut to profitability," chief executive Anthony Tan wrote in an email to staff members. ".
The effects of emerging technologies and rising borrowing costs were also emphasized by him: "Change has never been this fast. Artificial intelligence and other forms of generative technology are developing extremely quickly. The cost of capital has increased, which has a direct effect on the level of competition. ".
The so-called "super-app," also referred to as the "Uber of Southeast Asia," provides services throughout the region and is available in nations like Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
In a deal it referred to as "the largest-ever of its kind in Southeast Asia," Grab declared in March 2018 that it had acquired Uber's regional operations. ".
Due to the pandemic, Grab made 360 job cuts in its most recent round in 2020.
The company's shares, which are listed in New York, decreased by 1.2 percent on Wednesday.
The announcement follows job cuts at other gig economy businesses around the globe.
Grab's rival in Southeast Asia, Indonesian ride-hailing company GoTo, shed 600 more jobs in March after reducing its workforce by about 12% in the previous year.
The food delivery service Just Eat announced in March that it would eliminate 1,870 jobs in the UK due to a slowdown in business. There will be 1,700 job losses as a result of the company's decision to stop using its own couriers and start using contractors.
Additionally, the US ride-hailing app Lyft announced in April that it would lay off over 1,000 employees, or more than a quarter of its workforce. Additionally, it declared that it wouldn't hire candidates for another 250 open positions.
