Rapido

Rapido

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Today, Rapido has nearly half the share of the overall ride-hailing market in India, with monthly active users at ~50 million across bike, auto and cab taxi versus Uber’s 30 million (as of July-25). 

It’s come a long way since founding in 2015, nearly 10 years ago, fighting the Uber-Ola duopoly to emerge as a dominant player of reckon. Even Uber CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi called Rapido a formidable competitor in his recent podcast with Nikhil Kamath.

Also, Rapido has been in the news recently – with the launch of food delivery services ‘Ownly’ to now fight the duopoly in food delivery. And its recent partnerships with OTA (Online Travel Aggregators) to launch flight, hotel, bus and train ticketing. It’s on a steady pursuit to become the everything app, for every Indian.

In this podcast, Shantanu and I explore in this podcast how Rapido began as a B2B logistics venture called The Karrier and pivoted to the bike taxi model, the evolution of the taxi and ride hailing segment in India, key aspects from Rapido’s business model like subscription fees, optimizing for ~4 min ETA and more. Do check it out!

Key Timestamps

00:10: Rapido – Introduction & Industry Context

03:44: Rapido's Big Market Moments & Partnerships

05:07: Founding and Evolution of Rapido

06:53: Initial Growth, Guerilla Marketing & Expansion

09:50: Regulatory and Safety Challenges

11:30: COVID Pivot – Grocery & Essential Deliveries

14:32: Product Expansion: Autos and Cabs

16:25: Execution Philosophy & Tier 2 City Focus

18:40: Early Investors and Strategic Advice

20:02: Competition: Rapido vs Ola/Uber Models

21:36: Ride-Hailing Industry Timeline in India

24:57: Rapido's Diversified Business Model

27:10: Subscription Model for Drivers

29:48: Driver Earnings and Platform Stickiness

32:23: Product Strategy vs Ola/Uber

33:56: Cost-Frugal Culture & Tech Optimization

36:20: Customer and Driver Experience Innovations

38:17: Founders’ Vision and Bharat Focus

40:05: Market Share, Financial Metrics & Operational Insights

43:10: Final Thoughts on Disruption and Growth

Research

1. Lightspeed podcast: How Rapido Is Disrupting The Cab Market In India

2. India Quotient: Building India’s Largest Bike Taxi App

3. A Day in the Life as a Rapido Driver

4. Motilal Oswal Learning: The Rise of Rapido

5. Inc42: Rapido's Roving Eye

6. The Captable: India’s digital marketplaces are growing by going smaller

   
   

Episode Notes

Lazy to listen to the whole episode? Fair enough. Just scan through our notes below and maybe that'll entice you to give us a shot. We're not just any other podcast. We bring perspective and stories to the data, facts and business models.

Company overview

Rapido has officially surpassed Uber in India's ride-hailing market in terms of monthly active users and market share, according to multiple recent reports in the Economic Times and other major publications. As of July 2025, Rapido recorded around 50 million monthly active users compared to Uber’s 30 million, with its dominance particularly strong in the bike taxi and autorickshaw segments. The company's growth has been powered by its leadership in high-frequency, low-cost modes like bike taxis and autos, as well as rapid expansion into four-wheeler cabs, where it now commands nearly 30% market share.

In response, Uber has cut fares by 20–25% in major battleground cities and adopted a driver subscription model that echoes Rapido’s original approach, signaling recognition of Rapido's disruptive threat. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has publicly acknowledged Rapido as Uber’s toughest rival in India, stating that Rapido’s competitive heat is greater than that from Ola. Leading player Rapido claims over 1.5 million daily rides and holds a 61% market share in the bike taxi category as of early 2025.

Founding Story

Rapido's journey began with a logistics venture called The Karrier in 2014, founded by Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli, and Rishikesh SR.  Envisioned by an ex-Flipkart employee who scaled their Ekart services, it saw a gap in intra-city mini-trucks or what we call tempo - It allowed users to book mini-trucks for goods and deliveries in the last mile primarily

Although moderately successful, it lacked the desired scale and rapid growth due to the non-tech savvy nature of both customers and fleet owners coupled with the need for revolving credit lines within the stakeholders.

In 2015, Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli, and Rishikesh SR identified a recurring urban pain point daily commuting challenges and realized that India’s massive two-wheeler base was underutilized for public mobility. When Rapido started, there were a lot of others in the fray. Uber was almost a $30bn company globally, Ola had raised about $5bn. GoJek, the Indonesian startup, was almost 5 years old and had reached unicorn status, valued at approximately $1.3bn as of 2016.

Rapido’s early pitch: Offer nearly the same convenience as cabs, but at 1/5th the price: average cab at ~₹300 vs. Rapido rides ~₹60. Unlike cab models, where saving time justifies premium pricing, Rapido saves both time and money, attracting value-conscious and time-strapped urbanites

Their journey wasn't without obstacles. They faced rejection from 75 investors before securing meaningful funding. Hero MotoCorp’s Pawan Munjal stood out as an early supporter, giving credibility and much-needed capital. What started as a small operation in Bangalore expanded rapidly across more than 100 Indian cities, in fact dominating in T2 cities like Lucknow and Siliguri. By 2019, Rapido had created over 500,000 jobs through its captain (driver) network, and by 2024 crossed the 1 crore registered users milestone. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic saw Rapido adapting quickly, entering last-mile logistics and parcel delivery to support local businesses. As the landscape evolved, so did their offerings, with the addition of auto-rickshaw and even taxicab hailing by 2023.

Industry Landscape

The Pre-Digital Era: Traditional Taxi Services and First Organized Players

India's taxi industry has undergone a remarkable transformation over the past two decades. Before the arrival of app-based services, the country's taxi market was largely unorganized, characterized by traditional black-and-yellow taxis, auto-rickshaws, and limited radio cab services.

The organized taxi sector began taking shape in the early 2000s with the emergence of the first major players:

• Mega Cabs (2001): The first major organized sector player to establish operations in India, marking the beginning of professional taxi services.

• FastTrack Cabs (2000-2001): Operating primarily in South India, FastTrack was among the pioneers in providing organized taxi services, claiming to be "India's first cab aggregator since 1998" and establishing operations in Tamil Nadu.

• Meru Cabs (2006-2007): Founded by Neeraj Gupta, Meru Cabs launched in Mumbai with initial funding of ₹500 million and became the first to offer AC cabs with electronic meters and GPS/GPRS systems via call booking. By 2010, Meru had grown to become India's largest radio-taxi service provider with a fleet of 5,500 cabs across four metros.

These early players operated on a fleet ownership model, where companies owned the complete fleet with drivers as salaried employees. Bookings were primarily done via telephone calls, and cash was the dominant payment method.

The Digital Revolution: App-Based Aggregators Enter the Scene

The industry witnessed a paradigm shift with the arrival of app-based cab aggregators in the early 2010s:

• ANI Technologies (Ola Cabs) was founded in December 2010 by Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati, initially starting operations in Mumbai before shifting base to Bangalore. The company began with a trip planning service called Olatrip.com before recognizing the growing demand for on-demand cab services and launching Ola Cabs in January 2011. Ola introduced its mobile app in June 2012, transitioning from phone-based bookings to smartphone-enabled ride hailing.

• TaxiForSure was founded in June 2011 by IIM-Ahmedabad graduates Aprameya Radhakrishna and Raghunandan G. The company differentiated itself by working with cab operators through an operator-led model, contrasting with Ola's model of working with driver-entrepreneurs. By the time of its acquisition by Ola, TaxiForSure had presence in 47 cities with over 15,000 vehicles registered on its platform.

• Uber, the San Francisco-based ride-hailing giant, launched its operations in India on August 29, 2013, starting from Bangalore. The company initially targeted premium consumers with credit card-only payment options before expanding to Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Chennai with the entry-level product Uber Go in 2014. Uber adapted to local market conditions by introducing cash payment options in 2015 and partnering with Paytm for digital wallet payments.

The Indian on-demand cab market quickly became characterized by intense competition and consolidation:

Market Dynamics and Competition

By 2015, the competitive landscape had evolved significantly. Ola reportedly had the biggest market share, followed by TaxiForSure (which they acquired for $200M in 2015), Meru Cabs, and Uber. The rivalry between Ola and Uber intensified as both companies deployed vast sums of money to compete for customers through advertisements, driver incentives, and network expansion.

While Ola and Uber dominated the four-wheeler segment, a new player emerged to tap into India's massive two-wheeler market. Rapido was founded in November 2015 by Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli, and SR Rishikesh in Bangalore. The founders identified that two-wheelers comprised nearly 75% of vehicles in India and could provide faster, more affordable transportation for short distances.

Rapido's entry was particularly strategic as it addressed a market segment that the existing giants had overlooked - affordable, short-distance commuting using motorcycles and scooters. By 2024, Rapido had grown to become the second-largest ride-hailing service in India by daily rides, processing 16.5 lakh rides daily and achieving unicorn status with a valuation of $1.1 billion.

Rapido's Culture

• Driver-Centric: A core aspect of Rapido's culture is its focus on Captains (drivers), with 75-80% of the team working on Captain-related aspects, versus end- customers, which is the norm.

• Flexibility: The company builds its products around flexibility for Captains so they can work whenever they want, earning extra income. Majority of Captains are underemployed blue-collar workers, students, or government employees seeking to supplement their income, often earning 500-600 rupees for three hours of daily work.

• Frugality and Cost Efficiency: Rapido has a culture of capital efficiency and frugality, with developers being aware of cloud costs. They built on open-source solutions to avoid licensing fees.

• Ground-Level Understanding: Founders and leadership actively engage with Captains on the ground to understand their pain points and inform product development. Every team member, from founder to entry-level, is encouraged to act as a Captain at least once a week or take 10 rides a month to understand the experience firsthand.

Business Model

Core Business Model: Rapido operates on a peer-to-peer (P2P) model, connecting customers with independent two-wheeler riders (Captains). The fare depends on the distance traveled. Captains register through the Rapido Captain app, providing necessary documents, and their vehicles (bikes or scooters) must not be older than 2010.

Revenue Drivers:

• Commission-based (Bike Taxis): Rapido charges a commission, typically 20% of the total fare, for bike taxi services. This model is deemed relevant for bike taxis due to the flexibility required by part-time Captains.

• Subscription Model (Auto-rickshaws and Cabs): For auto-rickshaw and cab services, Rapido implemented a zero-commission model, charging Captains a fixed daily login fee instead. This fee can range from 9 to 39 rupees, depending on the city. This approach has been a game-changer, helping Rapido scale rapidly and achieve profitability.

• B2C Logistics: Rapido also earns revenue by helping logistics companies deliver commodities.

What set Rapido apart from Ola and Uber (other than the mode of its transportation) was its key customer base: almost ~50 per cent of its users were coming from Tier II cities and using Rapido for their daily commute needs. Rapido differentiates itself through affordability, faster service in traffic, and convenience. It targets price-sensitive markets and underserved segments, including Tier 2 and 3 cities.

The Zero Commission model

The zero commission model was one of the key strategic interventions that helped Rapido build supply and challenge the incumbents. Reminded us of the story of Alibaba in Chapter 6 of Narrative and Numbers by Aswath Damodaran. In 1999, when Alibaba was founded, online retail in China was in its infancy. And, Alibaba/ Taobao the customer facing website not only won this market where Amazon/Ebay lost but adapted strategies brilliantly for local conditions.

Three ways they did this: 1) Charging no transaction fees initially and depending on modest advertising charges. Hence, Alibaba became a bargain to retailers relative to other competitors. 2) Modeled itself as a bazaar, with online haggling between buyers and sellers - reflecting consumer behaviours in the offline world. 3) It was modeled for small and mid-sized retailers, not the big brands - who lack visibility, credibility and payment processing skills online - Taobao offered credibility and independent verification. In early 2013, about 75% of all online retail business was routed through Alibaba’s websites. The key lesson here is 1) Don’t be greedy - Alibaba made up in volumes what it didn’t in commissions. And 2) Adapt to local conditions - model after the small retailers, mimic offline conditions.

Alibaba, prior to IPO in 2014 had an operating profit of ~50% with revenues of $8bn. It never envisioned being some tech innovator, with negligible investments in innovation on R&D - that’s how it controlled the costs.  Even closer home, Meesho’s rise to dominance with its 0 commission model focused on smaller mom & pop stores building supply, Zerodha was the first 0 commission stock broker that made investing easy and disrupted stock broking. This is all similar to what Rapido did. The parallels to Alibaba and some other Asian counterparts are intentional and proof that this model can work and gain scale.

Marketing Strategy

The big breakthrough for Rapido would come in early 2016 - The Delhi government introduced the odd-even four-wheeler scheme to reduce pollution levels. This gave a much-needed impetus to ride-sharing, carpooling, and bike taxi services.

As many more bike-pooling apps launched in the capital region to take advantage of the Odd-Even framework, Aravind saw an opportunity to grow Rapido’s customer base.  During the two-week pilot period of the Odd-Even framework, Rapido ran free rides from the Malviya Nagar and Hauz Khas metro stations in Delhi to boost last-mile connectivity. They also doubled their fleet size for this period, pre-empting the high demand for service during this time. 

Brand Positioning: Rapido positions itself as "India's Bike-Taxi Disruptor" focusing on affordability, speed, and local connection, with the tagline "Bike Wali Taxi, Sabse Asaan" and "Ride Solo".

Celebrity Endorsements: Rapido leverages high-profile celebrities like Ranveer Singh (for North India) and Allu Arjun (for South India) in campaigns to increase brand awareness, explain the bike taxi concept, and build credibility. These campaigns are often video-heavy to visually explain the new concept.

Offline Marketing: Uses billboards and posters in high-traffic areas to improve visibility and complement digital campaigns. Early marketing included distributing pamphlets and leveraging word-of-mouth among friends and office groups.

Financials

Rapido’s strategy is quite simple: more users attract more captains, which further improves availability and reduces ETAs. Company philosophy is “Don’t solve for the top 10 million, solve for 100s of millions.”

Despite being the largest, Rapido hasn’t increased prices for profitability. Aravind mentions this multiple times:  “We didn’t increase fares for profitability our margins improved through utilization, pricing intelligence, and scale.” Unit economics have improved from a -20% to +7% contribution margin by optimizing pricing, incentives, and leveraging scale.

While the company’s FY25 financials are not public, ET recently reported that it had sources saying Rapido grew by +40% in FY25, up from 648 crore in FY24 - so close to 900+ crore. In most recent news, Rapido is finalising a $500-550 million (about Rs 4,500-5,000 crore) fundraising through a mix of primary and secondary deals, with food and grocery delivery company Swiggy exiting its stake. The primary component of the deal is expected to be about $300 million, with Dutch investor Prosus set to pump in $240-250 million, while early investors like WestBridge Capital will invest the balance.

Future Plans of the Company

Geographical Expansion: Plans to increase presence from 120 cities (January) to 500 cities.

Diversification into New Segments (Full-Stack Mobility Platform):

• Food Delivery: Preparing to launch a pilot of its food delivery service, Ownly, in Bengaluru, with plans to expand to ten cities. Ownly aims for a lower commission range (8-15%) compared to Swiggy/Zomato (16-30%) and will focus on affordability (e.g., sub-Rs 150 category). Swiggy is also an investor in Rapido.

• Fintech: Eyes a push into the fintech sector to provide lending and financial services for Captains. Rapido has invested in a company called Kosh, which does group lending to blue-collar workers.

• Integrated Public Transport: Plans to integrate metro and bus ticketing services to offer last-mile connectivity solutions, making the entire journey seamless.

• Electrification (EVs): EV transition is a significant future focus, aiming to reduce prices by 15% due to fuel cost savings. This would increase Captain earnings and allow consumers to benefit from a 10% price reduction. Rapido's approach is not to buy vehicles but to solve ecosystem challenges like EV financing, secondhand markets for EVs, and charging infrastructure, working with partners like TVS Motor and Pawan Munjal. They anticipate 30-60% of their fleet will transition to EVs in three to four years.

What's the Moat?

• Network Effect: Rapido benefits from a strong network effect, leading to more organic customer and driver downloads. In some cities, one in three people has used Rapido in the last 30 days.

• Cost Efficiency & Affordability: Rapido's core strength is providing services at significantly lower prices than competitors (e.g., bike taxi fares are one-third the price of a cab). This is achieved through lean operations, low-cost engineering, and a focus on optimal driver earnings without over-incentivizing.

• Deep Penetration in Underserved Markets: Successfully targeted Tier 2 and 3 cities and the "common Indian man" who relies on two-wheelers, which incumbents overlooked.

• Driver-Centric Model: Its focus on Captain flexibility and welfare, including insurance and micro-loans, fosters loyalty and a unique supply base (part-time Captains) that competitors haven't fully tapped into.

• Adaptability & Strategic Pivots: Demonstrated willingness to pivot business models (e.g., zero-commission for autos/cabs) and expand into new verticals based on market needs and competitive landscape.