'Converge' Future of Mobility for SEA

Converge
What lies ahead in the
Future of Mobility for SEA?
March 2019 Solution Centre

Converge - What lies ahead in the Future of Mobility for SEA?
03
Converge is a series of reports by Deloitte Southeast Asia Innovation that provides insights into the
technology trends and startup ecosystem in Southeast Asia (Footnote 1).
Each report provides a snapshot of the upcoming technology trends in a particular sector and
introduces promising startups that are driving new ideas and taking on challenges that are unique to
Southeast Asia.
This special edition on the topic of Mobility is co-authored together with Deloitte’s Future of Mobility
Global Solution Centre, a Deloitte Global initiative.
Join us in discovering interesting and potentially disruptive startups and initiatives across a myriad of
industries, and feel the pulse of Southeast Asia’s thriving digital revolution!
Who the report is for:
• Corporations exploring innovation capabilities and startup engagement
• Individuals who are keen to understand technology and innovation trends driven by the startup
ecosystem in Southeast Asia
About Deloitte Southeast Asia Innovation
Deloitte Southeast Asia (SEA) Innovation is a cross-function, cross-country innovation unit dedicated
to driving the innovation agenda as a culture and value creator across the region.
About Deloitte Future of Mobility Global Solution Centre
The Deloitte Future of Mobility Global Solution Centre aims to become a globally recognized pioneer
of co-developed analytics & digital mobility solutions to address the rapidly changing mobility
landscape, focusing on customer centricity & emerging technologies.
Have feedback on Converge? Drop us a note at
SEAinnovation@deloitte.com!
Footnote 1
Limitations: While we try our best to ensure that this report is up-to-date and is accurate in the presentation of trends as
of the date of publication, there are some limitations to this report. Some startups choose not to disclose their funding
rounds and/ or funding amounts. As such, the data might not reflect the exact situation.
Sources: This report draws from startup databases such as Tracxn, Crunchbase, and Tech in Asia, e27, as well as reported
data from local, regional and global news sources, and respective company websites.
About
Converge

04
0.0
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50.0
60.0
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1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia
Lao People's Democratic Republic Malaysia Myanmar
Philippines Singapore Thailand
Timor-Leste Viet Nam
Urban Population (% of Total)
1
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS
Urbanisation and the
Challenges of Mobility
Mass mobility issues are often related to urbanisation, which is
usually a sign of burgeoning prosperity. In the growing economy of
Southeast Asia, it is common for the city centres to be a bustling
hive of tourist and commercial activity, marrying the old and the
new in a smorgasbord of economic opportunities.
Increasing urban density, however, is a double-edged sword.
Beyond the benefits of agglomeration and the network effect,
there are challenges like congestion and pollution, which adversely
affect individual health and wellness.
From scrappy tuk-tuks to private cars to modern commuter
subways, commuters looking to get around town in Southeast
Asian cities are often faced with a plethora of options that provide
no real relief to the congestion and pollution they expect to
experience. With Southeast Asia becoming increasingly wealthy
and urbanised (see Figure 1), this is set to get worse with more
vehicles and residents in the urban centres.
The sight of skyscrapers remains a common representation of
modernisation and prosperity in this region. As cities compete
to build up, instead of spread out, the solution to congestion
issues at these centres resides in public transportation system
improvements. Jakarta recently opened Indonesia’s very first mass
rapid transit system in March 2019 to alleviate gridlock in the city
centre. Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam are also building up
their urban commuter rail systems.
The dizzying pace of economic progress and urbanisation has given
both new aspirations and new headaches for city governments to
deal with. In this report, we will also see corporations and some
entrepreneurs stepping to the fore, making use of emerging
technology trends to create solutions that can alleviate the
problems which come with urbanisation.
Source: Urban Population (% of Total), World Bank, 20171
Figure 1: Urbanisation Trends for Southeast Asia

05
The smartphone changes mobility
Eminently, advancements in consumer telecommunications,
computing and smartphone internet penetration in Southeast
Asian countries have enabled many app-based solutions to
emerge within the last decade. While commuters rejoice at having
many transportation options at their fingertips, changes to back-
end operations and business models, the continuous maintenance
of mass transportation infrastructure, and mindset shifts towards
the business of providing first-mile last-mile transportation
services, are all required for societies to fully embrace and benefit
from the potential of having new technology in our lives.
A multitude of apps now enable consumers from this region to
hail a ride from anything ranging from a car to a motorcycle to a
3-wheeled vehicle (for example, a tuk-tuk), or for consumers to
move across a distance using a shared bicycle, a shared electronic
scooter, or a shared car. The immediacy with which personal
demand and mass supply for transportation can now be matched
has also transformed the landscape of on-demand mobility
provision, extending this model to traditionally scheduled and
fixed-route systems like public bus services.
SWAT and Via Transportation, for example, are two companies
that have developed a dynamic routing and matching algorithm
to enable a fleet of on-demand public bus services (see Table 1).
Announced in 2018 by the Singapore government, this new service
is slated to be on trial for six months, and will allow commuters to
request for pick-up and to alight at any bus stop within the defined
geographical location of the trial2
.
2
https://www.lta.gov.sg/apps/news/page.aspx?c=2&id=ba5e1ec1-ace5-4639-ad5c-e5f3fd1c92a8

06
Startup Description Country Year
founded
Funding
SWAT
https://swatmobile.io/
SWAT provides shared ride services which uses dynamic
routing algorithm for booking shared rides. The platform uses
algorithms to assign passengers for each ride maintaining
the lowest possible commute time for the passengers. The
platform uses distance-based pricing model.
Singapore 2016 Seed- S$3M
Via Transportation
https://ridewithvia.com/
Via is an on-demand transit system that takes multiple
passengers heading in the same direction and books them into
a shared vehicle.
USA 2012 Series C-
US$387.1M
Dada Bus
http://buskeji.com/
Dada Bus is a bus pooling app for shuttle service. It leverages
big data to smartly match users with routes. Provides services
on 2,000 transportation routes in 30 Chinese cities, catering to
2 million users as of Feb 2016. Has 800+ buses which are run by
100 operators. Aimed at white-collar workers and allows users
to book through wechat and its own app.
China 2014 Series C –
US$59.7M
Shuttl
https://ride.shuttl.com/
Shuttl is an app-based bus-pooling service operating in select
Indian locations, primarily catering to corporate commuters.
Users can book the service by selecting the boarding point and
drop points. The company rolled out inter-city bus services and
rentals in Nov 2016 to make use of unutilized fleet capacity.
India 2015 Series B –
US$36.6M
Table 1 – On-Demand Bus Services
*Information and numbers sourced from Crunchbase and company websites

07
3
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/indonesia-charging-ahead-with-electric-vehicle-ambitions
4
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Business-trends/Japan-carmakers-angle-for-EV-primacy-in-Southeast-Asia
5
https://www.edb.gov.sg/en/our-industries/company-highlights/bollore-global-innovation-centre.html
6
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/fan-maker-dyson-to-build-electric-cars-in-singapore
7
https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2182466/powered-state-china-takes-charge-electric-buses
8
https://www.livemint.com/auto-news/how-fame-2-scheme-aims-to-promote-the-use-of-electric-vehicles-in-india-1552352972259.html
Much has been discussed about the battery-charging
infrastructure required around town to make any
network of Electric Vehicles (EV) feasible as a mode of
transport. Over the years, as the technology of specific
components of the EV, like batteries, improve as well,
governments are finally coming around to embrace and
lay the groundwork for EVs.
In Indonesia, the government has said in January
2019 that it was open to foreign investment for
the manufacture of EVs, and has decided on fiscal
incentives to encourage the sale of EVs locally. Their
aim is to have EVs form at least 20% of total domestic
vehicle sales by 2025, which translates to about
400,000 cars and 2 million motorcycles3
. In Thailand,
the government has offered generous tax incentives
to automakers producing plug-in hybrids and electrics
in the country. Meanwhile, in Vietnam, conglomerate
Vingroup has also taken huge steps towards EV
development, targeting to launch their homegrown
electric vehicle in September 2019 with the backing of
about 20 European companies, including BMW4
.
In the meantime, in Singapore, the government
has supported BlueSG, a subsidiary of French
conglomerate Bolloré Group, in their pursuit of
implementing a network of 1000 EVs and 500 charging
stations across the island to facilitate their car-sharing
business venture5
.Most significantly, Dyson’s decision
to establish manufacturing operations in Singapore for
production of its first electric vehicle, targeted to launch
in 2021, signals great intentions from both parties to
make a big impact on the EV industry in the region6
.
Would it be more consequential for public or private
vehicles to go electric? China’s tech hub Shenzhen
has blazed the trail by electrifying its entire public bus
network7
. Meanwhile, India’s government has recently
expanded its Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of
(Hybrid) and Electric Vehicles (Fame II), showing its
renewed support for the industry to deliver on greener
private and public vehicles that can reduce pollution in
the country8
.
Perhaps, it would be easier to implement electrification
on public transportation systems, since governments
can more easily control, monitor, and manage the
infrastructural development needed for a public
transportation system, which serves a larger volume of
commuter activity, compared to private vehicles.
Slowly but surely, the onset of
Electric Vehicles in Southeast Asia

08
Public transportation is an important system to get
right in order for the wider society to function, and
often involves a government hand. Attempts to privatise
and commercialise public transportation provision has
shown what a poor profit this business brings, however.
Asset-heavy and capital-intensive, commercial public
transportation companies have turned to other
incidental activities like property rental to boost profits
—to varying levels of success. Hong Kong’s commuter
rail service, MTR Corporation, is popularly known to
make more money from property development, than the
provision of mass transportation9
.
Commercial public transportation is a tough business;
beyond the expensive infrastructure required of them,
they have to comply with strict government guidelines
ensuring affordable pricing and have to face the wrath
of angry commuters when systems break down.
Singapore’s commuter rail operator SMRT Corporation
has experienced this in the past few years, when
breakdowns and disruptions have occurred more
frequently than before, prompting the public at large
to voice vehement displeasure10
and question their
competence and business model11
.
This phenomenon of business diversification is not just
for urban rail operators though. Even amongst disruptive
startups in the mobility sector, most notably Go-Jek and
Grab in Southeast Asia (see Table 2), we have seen their
shift from being ride-hailing apps specifically, to being
the “everyday superapp” for their users12 13
, in a model
that takes after China’s WeChat all-in-one umbrella app
structure that houses many mini programmes serving a
variety of their users’ everyday needs.
Diversification needed
for profitability
9
https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2136403/mtr-corp-announces-64-cent-rise-net-profit-hk168-billion
10
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/when-it-not-enough-smrt-apologise-breakdowns
11
https://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20111218-316922.html
12
https://www.grab.com/sg/press/business/grab-unveils-open-platform-strategy-to-build-southeast-asias-first-everyday-superapp/
13
https://www.gojek.io/superapp/
14
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/grab-launches-online-checkout-system-plans-customer-credit-services-and-loans

09
The businesses of Grab and Go-Jek seem to be evolving everyday as they experiment with new services, markets, and pricing models. One
of the biggest push from the app-based startups is in financial services. Grab, for one, has not only created its GrabPay e-wallet system, it
announced at a conference in March 2019 the launch of an online checkout and point-of-sale device integration, a Pay Later plan offering
credit and instalment payment options to worthy customers, and a variety of insurance options for all its different segments of users14
.
Startup Year
Founded
Active Regions Some Notable Funders Funding
Go-Jek
https://www.go-jek.com
2010 Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia,
Philippines,
Vietnam
Tencent Holdings, JD.com,
Google, Temasek Holdings, PT
Astra International
Series F – US$3.1B
Grab
https://www.grab.com
2012 Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia,
Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia,
Myanmar, Thailand
SoftBank Vision Fund, Central
Group of Company, Yamaha
Motor, Hyundai Motor, Toyota
Motor, Microsoft
Series H – US$8.8B
Didi Chuxing
https://didiglobal.com/
2012 China, Australia, Japan, Mexico,
Brazil
SoftBank Investment Advisors,
Apple, Tencent Holdings,
Alibaba Group, Ant Financial,
Temasek, Ping An Ventures
Corporate Round –
US$20.6B
Ola
https://www.olacabs.com/
2011 India, Australia, UK, New
Zealand
Hyundai Motor Company, Kia,
Tencent Holdings, SoftBank
Group, Didi Chuxing, GIC
Corporate Round –
US$3.8B
Table 2 – Becoming the Everyday Superapp in Asia

10
Armed now with the ability to track how users actually
drive and how commuters actually move through the
various modes of transportation, insurance tech startups
are emerging to offer personalised quotations and
premium plans based on real usage.
An example of usage-based insurance was launched
in 2016, between insurance company AXA and Grab,
offering commercial motor insurance for Grab drivers
based on a “per kilometre driven” basis, instead of the
norm of fixed annual premiums15
. Since then, Grab has
grown in its ambitions as a financial services provider.
Based on Grab’s latest announcements in March 2019,
their plans to roll out even more financial services
include micro-insurance and an insurance marketplace
through their joint venture with Chinese company Zhong
An Insurance.
With 6.6 million drivers and agents, over 100 million
users, delivering over 6 million rides a day across
8 countries in Southeast Asia, Grab has access to
individualised first party data on personal commuting,
payments and other daily requirements. Would insurers
be similarly enabled by technological advancements and
new business models to tap on this treasure trove of
possibilities?
Can insurance
providers adapt?
15
https://www.axa.com.sg/latest-news/2016/grab-and-axa-launch-first-usage-based-insurance

11
Despite the spectacular exit by Uber from this region in 2018, mobility service startups continue to emerge and hustle
to gain market share. While we have yet to see the enthusiasm for this sector taper off, it is expected that the many
players will eventually consolidate to leave much fewer dominant players, with much larger fleets to manage and
own across the region. This has been the case in Europe (see Figure 2), and we foresee that a similar situation may
emerge in Southeast Asia, with the natural attrition of startups with poorer value propositions, operational experience
and funding.
The importance of fleet management will certainly emerge in time to come with dominant players forming. The ability
to optimally coordinate a vast amount of these resources will require a whole new level of management, and will be of
paramount importance as dominant players strive to sustain and win over keen competition.
Moving beyond mobility solutions, fleet management is also starting to become a branch of business on its own.
Startups focusing on telematics and analytics have also emerged, like DRVR from Thailand, and Overdrive in
Singapore. Such startups aim to make fleet operators more efficient with the use of predictive analytics, based off the
data collected on tracked vehicle performance, driver behavior, unscheduled stops and other relevant events. (see
Table 3). Having data analytics to help detect faults within each vehicle or with driver behaviour enables preventive
measures to be taken, improving safety as well.
Importance of fleet management
comes during consolidation
Figure 2: Europe’s Consolidation of Fleet Management Business
22 5
Players man-
aged>50% of market
share 15 years ago…
In Europe where the ﬂeet management business has become a signiﬁcant market, multiple cross M&As
have led to the consolidation of the market, and the same could occur in Asia.
Source: Deloitte Analysis
Players manage>50%
of market share in
2017…
Deutsche Leasing
ALD Automotive
HPI
Arval
Alphabet
Fleet Company
TÜV SÜD
ASG
Masterlease
Athlon
LeasePlan
GE Capital
Car Professional
Management
FleetLogistics
Daimler Fleet Management
Parcours
Fleetlevel
ING Car Lease
Automotive Service
Group
HLA ARI
LHS
ALD Automotive
Athlon
Arval
Alphabet
LeasePlan

12
Founded
Funding
Overdrive
https://overdrive.sg/
Overdrive is an integrated cloud solution that allows its user
to connect a vehicle from his/ her smart device. It helps users
to get instant one-time location of the vehicle, engine cut to
immobilize the vehicle to prevent unauthorized usage with the
wireless relay, blast tracking with 15 minutes real-time location
updates, receive instant notifications from the vehicle and plan
maintenance schedule
Singapore 2015 Series A -
US$2.9M
Versafleet
https://versafleet.co/
Versafleet is a cloud-hosted solution for logistics operations.
Has features for job order management, scheduling,
dispatching, route optimization, with the VersaDrive app for
drivers for up-to-date job details, photos, e-signatures capture,
and updating order status
Singapore 2012 Seed –
US$3.5M
DRVR
http://www.drvr.co/
DRVR provides fleet management and big data analytics focused
on driving behavior to improve fleet efficiency, direct costs, and
deliver improved customer service.
Thailand 2015 Seed –
US$522K
Katsana
https://www.katsana.com
Katsana is a data company focusing on usage-based insurance
and connected cars. Its prediction engine tracks driver
behaviour patterns, scoring drivers based on actual risk on the
road, and engages them to become better drivers. Katsana
provides the next generation web-based GPS tracking and fleet
management solution. It employs advanced GPS trackers that
utilize both GPS and GLONASS positioning system
Malaysia 2013 Venture
Round –
US$1.1M
Table 3 – Fleet management analytics startups

Source: e-Conomy SEA 2018 Southeast Asia’s internet economy hits an inflection point, Google and Temasek (2018)”
2015
E-commerce
5.5B
2017
10.9B
2018
34%
SEA E-commerce market size (GMV, $B)
62%
114%
23.2B
2025
102B
CAGR ‘15-’18
CAGR ‘15-’25
62%
34%
CAGR
13
As one of the most engaged, mobile-first internet regions globally, Southeast Asia provides much more business
opportunities to app-based companies than just ride-hailing. The Southeast Asian digital economy, which would
include ride-hailing, ecommerce, and food delivery, is slated to exceed US$240 billion by 2025, from US$72 billion
clocked for 2018.17
The ecommerce segment has been identified as the fastest growing segment of the burgeoning digital economy
of Southeast Asia. It reportedly reached US$23 billion in 2018 and is forecasted to surpass US$100 billion by 2025
(see Figure 3). One of the biggest hurdles to ecommerce in this region, however, is last mile delivery18
. Unlike major
markets like USA or China, Southeast Asia is not only fragmented by country borders, it is also physically fragmented.
Indonesia, for instance, is made up of over 17,000 islands, while the Philippines has over 7,500.
E-logistics take off!
Figure 3: SEA E-Commerce Market Size
17
https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/intl/en-apac/tools-resources/research-studies/e-conomy-sea-2018-southeast-asias-internet-
economy-hits-inflection-point/
18
https://www.reuters.com/article/lazada-strategy/planes-trains-and-automobiles-lazadas-logistics-battle-to-win-se-asia-idUSL8N1M906S
19
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/jan/02/rwanda-scheme-saving-blood-drone

14
Founded
Funding
Ninja Van
https://www.ninjavan.co/
Ninja Van provides e-commerce logistics services to
enterprises companies in SEA countries. Core offering
includes last-mile delivery, drop-off services, and collect
services. It is involved in providing logistics needs of
customers by offering them options of tracking their parcels,
receiving real-time updates and gaining access to alternative
pickup points. Utilizes proprietary technology to automate,
optimize, and streamline the operations.
Singapore 2014 Series C –
US$117.5M
Skootar
https://www.skootar.com/
Skootar is a web and mobile app that connects users with
available scooter messengers in the area. Skootar also
features tracking and rating systems for messengers.
Thailand 2014 Various –
US$470K
Zoom
zoomitnow.co/
Zoom provides on demand local delivery services for
individuals and businesses, connecting the shipper with
a runner, who may can sign up on the platform to provide
delivery services.
Malaysia 2016 Seed –
MYR4M
Logivan
https://www.logivan.com/
Logivan is an online marketplace for on-demand trucking
services. The platform connects shippers with a network of
truck owners/drivers with unutilized capacity and enables
shippers to search and book trucking services. The platform
also offers real-time freight visibility, electronic proof of
delivery and online payments.
Vietnam 2017 Venture
Round –
US$7.9M
Table 4 – Logistics Technology Startups

15
The modernisation and growing prosperity of Southeast
Asia is more than just building higher skyscrapers.
Becoming a smart city is also the goal, and there are
many ways lives and livelihoods can be improved with
the interconnectivity made available to us by the Internet
of Things.
Mobility is an integral part of a smart city. As can be
seen by the startups that have shaken up the industry,
it is clear that mobility is more than just how people
move from point A to point B, but also about goods,
retail commerce and financial services. Underpinning
all of that is the incredible wealth of first-party
consumer data smart cities and new-age companies sit
on, changing the ballgame for almost every consumer-
facing industry that exists.
In such a highly interconnected ecosystem, it is almost
impossible for one party to dominate and control,
necessitating a mindset change in how companies think
about and view their businesses. Business competitors
are no longer locked in a zero-sum game, and the
potential benefits of partnerships and alliances are
becoming stronger with this interconnectedness.
Partnerships and collaborations are inevitably the way
forward, to catalyse change within organisations to catch
up with the rapidly changing environment and demands
of the consumer. Traditional automaker competitors
Daimler and BMW, for instance, have set up a joint
venture in Berlin to spearhead their combined efforts
into creating a suite of mobility services for Europe20
.
Japanese car-manufacturer Toyota is also looking to
move into providing mobility services, and has invested
in and partnered up with Grab to provide their fleet with
telematics solutions21
.
Traditional business models cannot carry us into the
new world of smart cities and mobility in Southeast Asia.
Instead, it would be of paramount importance to groom
ecosystems, so that various stakeholders can learn from
and work with each other. That will be the hope for a
congestion-free and pollution-free future of mobility in
Southeast Asia.
The brave new world
requires alliances
20
https://www.daimler.com/innovation/case/shared-services/jv-daimler-and-bmw.html
21
https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Sharing-Economy/Grab-leverages-Toyota-s-telematics-technology-as-competition-heats-up

16
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