Ola shrinks workforce in profit push even as Rapido gains ground
- Employee count at Ola’s parent ANI Technologies has dropped 57% since April 2024, even as rivals Uber and Rapido expand in India’s ride-hailing market.
- The SoftBank- and Tencent-backed firm is cutting costs as valuation falls and competition heats up.
Ola’s parent company ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd has seen its staff size cut by more than half since April last year even as it struggles to hold its ground against ride-hailing rivals Uber and Rapido.
The total number of salaried employees at ANI Technologies fell 57% to 376 in August from 886 in April 2024, as per the company’s data with the Employee Provident Fund Organisation.
Three people aware of the developments at Ola Cabs, which was rechristened Ola Consumer last year, attributed the downsizing to the company’s push for profitability.
“There was significant downsizing at the firm in the last one-and-a-half years as the company is looking to reduce its cash burn," one of them said, declining to be identified, as did the other two. “It was a combination of roles not being filled, automation, and elimination of some positions."
ANI Technologies also houses Ola Group’s financial services, cloud kitchen, and electric logistics businesses. While the company has not yet reported its financials for 2024-25, in FY24, its losses narrowed to ₹328 crore from ₹772 crore in the year prior even as revenue declined 5% to ₹2,011 crore.
The downsizing at the startup through which Aggarwal began his entrepreneurial journey in 2010 comes as Uber and Rapido have been gaining speed in India.
Also, earlier this year, US-based asset management company Vanguard, an investor in ANI Technologies, slashed its valuation of Ola Consumer to $1.25 billion—a steep markdown from the company’s peak valuation of $7.3 billion.
Losing ground to Uber and Rapid
According to an industry executive privy to the internal estimates of the cab aggregators, Rapido has gained over 20% market share in the four-wheeler ride-hailing segment since starting services in late 2023, growing mostly at the expense of Ola.
Uber’s market share hovers at around 45%, while Ola’s has dropped to 25-30% from 42-44% in FY24, according to this executive, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.
“Ola used to be our main competition. Now the tougher competition in India is Rapido," Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said on Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath’s podcast ‘People by WTF’ recently.
Rapido has posed strong competition to the Uber-Ola duopoly in the cab-hailing segment, said Pratik Shah, partner, EY Parthenon–automotive and mobility.
“Rapid expansion in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, a driver-friendly subscription model, and strong app adoption have helped [Rapido] compete effectively with Uber and Ola," Shah said. “Ola continues to maintain presence across major cities and segments, [but is] facing strong competition from Rapido, while Uber leverages its global experience and brand trust."
Uber India Systems Pvt. Ltd, the main entity through which Uber conducts its business in India, saw its registered employees on the EPFO increase from 3,866 in April 2024 to 4,763 in July this year. Rapido’s parent firm Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd saw its total employee count increase from 678 to 762 in that period.
Ola Electric in focus
Aggarwal’s attention has been on getting the publicly listed Ola Electric Mobility Ltd, which sells electric scooters and bikes, to profitability, according to the second of the three people mentioned earlier. Since listing on the public markets in August 2024, Ola Electric’s shares have fallen by about 36% on NSE.
“Profitability has become crucial to deliver for Ola Electric as it is publicly listed now. It’s not a surprise his focus is there," this person said.
While Ola Electric is battling dwindling market share owing to tough competition from rivals and mounting losses, Aggarwal’s artificial intelligence venture, Krutrim, has struggled with layoffs and high cash burn.
ANI Technologies has raised $3.84 billion across 25 fundraising rounds from marquee investors including Softbank Group Corp., Tencent Holdings Ltd, and Tiger Global Management Llc, per data from market intelligence platform Tracxn. The company last raised $20 million in a Series J funding round led by Arrow Capital in February 2022.
While SoftBank held about a 21% stake in the company, Tencent’s shareholding stood at around 9% at the end of FY24, as per ANI Technology’s latest available disclosures.
Ola did not respond to Mint’s queries emailed on Friday.
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