GrabTaxi is now known simply as Grab, according to Anthony Tan, the company’s CEO, in an email sent to users of the ride-sharing service.
The company was established in Malaysia in 2012 to offer a different approach to hailing a taxi. Today, Grab has a presence in six Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, and now offers several transport services such as GrabCar, GrabCar+, GrabExpress, GrabBike, and GrabHeli.
Following is the entire statement from Tan:
Today, GrabTaxi is embarking on a new journey. From this day forward we will be known as simply as – Grab. Many of you are our pioneers, you took a chance with us when many others doubted us.
You were so patient with us when we couldn’t deliver. You helped us grow to be the largest tech start-up Southeast Asia has ever seen. But we still have so much more to learn from you. Your loyalty has been incredibly humbling and is what motivates us to strive and improve even more everyday. We’re not slowing down at all, in fact, we’re just getting started.
Looking back, It’s very humbling for me to think of how we started. Our first office was a little guardhouse and the whole team could fit around one small coffee table. We didn’t even have internet and had to tether off internet from our phones to our computers. It was 2012 and all we set out to do was to help people by improving the taxi service.
Then we realised we could do more. We can truly change the way people travel for the better, not just in our city, but throughout Southeast Asia.
We started new transportation services around the region with cars, bikes, deliveries and more. And our simple idea grew to something much bigger.
Because of this, we are more determined than ever to make sure we are accessible to everyone, anytime, anywhere. No one should be left behind. And we will keep on raising the bar for the safety of our service. No ride is better than an unsafe ride. The Grab team and I live by these missions.
So let’s continue on this journey together. We are determined to make our region a better place and because of your support we are already doing so.