Ride-share group BlaBlaCar taps AI for 20-country expansion / Photo: Arun SANKAR - AFP
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Ride-share group BlaBlaCar taps AI for 20-country expansion
French ride-sharing and travel site BlaBlaCar said Tuesday that it would push into 20 new countries -- double the current number -- thanks to the scaling opportunities provided by AI.
The company said demand for ride sharing has soared with the surge in fuel prices amid the Mideast war, with 800,000 new drivers joining its platform between March and June.
"The growth we have observed over recent months demonstrates that drivers find the cost-sharing model more relevant than ever," chief executive Nicolas Brusson said in a statement.
From its base in Paris, BlaBlaCar was able to harness artificial intelligence to analyse local market data, translate and illustrate its app, and launch targeted advertising without deploying anyone on the ground, a company official told AFP.
The entire process took "a few months" and "significantly less" investment compared to a 10-year rollout across its first 20 countries since being founded in 2006, the official added.
It will now offering carpooling services across countries in four regions: Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Balkans in Europe, and beginning in North Africa with Morocco.
P.Tamimi--SF-PST