Yangon, Myanmar, 30 August 2018 – Grab, Southeast Asia’s leading online-to-offline (O2O) mobile platform, has introduced a new photo-sharing option in its in-app messaging feature GrabChat. Available in the latest versions of the Grab app, the photo-sharing option will allow passengers to snap a quick photo of their pick-up location and send it to the driver for easier pick-ups. Grab is the first regional ride-hailing app to provide this option to bring added convenience to passengers in Yangon and Mandalay where roads can be complex, and pick-up locations may not be as straightforward.

GrabChat was launched in 2017 to allow drivers and passengers to message one another directly so they can find the best location for a pick-up. Today, 35 percent of all bookings through Grab app in Myanmar utilise GrabChat and since its launch, Grab has seen a decrease in cancellation rates. Meanwhile, the frequency of drivers cancelling rides in Myanmar because of “passenger no show” has decreased by 32 percent. Across Southeast Asia, bookings with GrabChat has reduced cancellations by up to 50 percent. This means several million people are able to find their rides daily with the help of GrabChat.

In order to further decrease cancellation rate and make the pick-up experience more convenient for passengers and drive-partners, the photo-sharing option in GrabChat will facilitate better communications between both parties. For example, if a passenger is waiting at one of the entrances of Junction Square shopping mall in Yangon and is not sure if the driver knows which entrance to drive towards, the passenger can take a quick photo of where she/he is standing and share it with the driver – all through GrabChat.

To share photos in GrabChat, the passenger can tap on the “camera” icon and the interface will change to the device’s default camera app. The passenger can then take a photo and send it to the driver. In the latest version of the Grab app, this photo-sharing option only allows passengers to send photos while drivers can only receive and view the photos. Grab plans to allow drivers to share photos with passengers later in the year – for even less cancellations, and an even shorter time to find their ride.

After a ride is completed, the photos will be removed from GrabChat, However, Grab stores the photos and chat logs for safety reasons and so they can be made available to assist in an investigation if required.

Looking ahead, Grab will also use these photos to enrich and bring more accuracy to designated Points-of-Interest (POIs) which can be seen as green dots in the booking page of the Grab app. With these photos, Grab will be able to better understand the locations which cause confusion and how POIs can be improved.

For more information about Grab Myanmar, visit http://www.grab.com  or www.facebook.com/GrabMM.