Global ride-hailing platform inDrive is aggressively expanding its “super app” strategy, launching in-app advertising across its top 20 markets and scaling grocery delivery services in Pakistan. Headquartered in Mountain View, California, the company is diversifying its revenue streams to reduce reliance on ride commissions and improve margins in highly competitive, price-sensitive regions.
Monetizing Attention: The New Advertising Play
The transition toward advertising marks a strategic shift for a company traditionally defined by its peer-to-peer bidding model. According to Andries Smit, inDrive’s chief growth business officer, the advertising rollout follows successful mid-2025 tests that generated hundreds of millions of impressions, capturing significant interest from global financial and consumer brands.
The initial focus centers on high-engagement placements within the app, specifically during the waiting period post-booking and while passengers are in transit. While long-term plans include in-car and on-vehicle advertising, Smit noted that the company will prioritize digital in-app formats through 2026 to avoid the operational complexities of physical outdoor advertising in emerging markets.
Pakistan: The Hub for Super App Expansion
Pakistan has become a primary testing ground for inDrive’s broader ecosystem. The company is scaling grocery delivery through a strategic partnership with Krave Mart, a local dark-store operator that received an investment from inDrive in December 2024.
The grocery service, launching first in Karachi, promises delivery times between 20 and 30 minutes for over 7,500 items, including fresh produce and household essentials. With free delivery on orders exceeding PKR 499 (approximately $2), inDrive aims to leverage its existing, highly active user base to bypass the prohibitive customer acquisition costs that have plagued many quick-commerce startups.
Capitalizing Where Others Hesitate
Despite broader investor caution in the Pakistani market—where equity funding has remained significantly below 2021-2022 peaks—inDrive continues to double down. The firm has already deployed at least half of its $100 million multi-year investment program, with Pakistan receiving the largest share of the capital.
The company’s growth metrics underscore this commitment: in 2025, ride volumes in Pakistan rose by nearly 40% year-over-year, while courier delivery services surged by 67% in the first half of the year. inDrive now operates in over 20 Pakistani cities, providing a robust infrastructure to cross-sell new vertical services.
Diversifying Beyond Ride-Hailing
The push into commerce and advertising is a direct response to the maturing ride-hailing market. While ride-hailing previously accounted for 95% of inDrive’s revenue, that figure has dropped to roughly 85%, even as the core mobility business continues to expand. This shift demonstrates the successful scaling of new service lines.
With a presence in 1,065 cities across 48 countries and over 360 million total app downloads, inDrive is cementing its status as the world’s second most-downloaded mobility app. Looking toward the next three to five years, the company intends to integrate further verticals, including financial services, to transform its platform into an essential daily utility for users in emerging economies.