Tag: GoTo

Singapore – Southeast Asian ride-hailing and food delivery companies Grab and GoTo are reportedly in advanced discussions to merge, according to sources who spoke to Reuters.  

According to the report, the move comes as both companies seek to minimise years of losses in a fiercely competitive market.

This marks the latest attempt at a merger between the two rivals, having discussions falling through in the previous years.  Despite the history of failed negotiations, investors are reportedly eager to see a deal finalised in 2025. Reuters’ sources say merger talks were revived in December 2024.

The combined market capitalisation of the two companies is estimated to be nearly $25 billion.

However, contradictory to reports, GoTo has denied the discussions about a potential merger in a statement, saying that “there is no agreement between the Company and any party to enter into a merger transaction of the type.”

GoTo’s e-commerce unit, Tokopedia, was acquired by TikTok in 2023, with the latter gaining a 75% controlling stake. As part of the partnership, the social media platform announced a US$1.5b investment into GoTo.

Jakarta, Indonesia – GoTo Group has taken a significant step forward in enhancing productivity across its engineering teams by collaborating with Microsoft Indonesia to adopt GitHub Copilot, an AI developer tool.

GoTo’s move in integrating AI into the company’s workflow underscores its commitment to driving innovation while empowering its workforce to deliver impactful technology at scale. 

Hans Patuwo, chief operating officer at GoTo said, “Since June 2024, almost a thousand GoTo’s engineers have adopted GitHub Copilot, with full rollout expected by mid-October 2024. The adoption of this AI-powered coding assistant has enabled our engineers to enhance code quality and to accomplish more in less time.”

He added, “GoTo engineers have reported significant time savings averaging over seven hours per week, allowing them to innovate with greater speed and to bring more value to our users.”

GitHub Copilot aims to boost engineers’ productivity and happiness in daily coding tasks with its AI capabilities, from real-time code suggestions, chat assistance in the integrated development environment, to breaking down complex coding concepts using daily conversational language.

Andrew Boyd, general manager of digital natives and startups at Microsoft Asia, said, “We are proud to support GoTo in their mission to empower progress by offering technology infrastructure and solutions that enable everyone to thrive in the digital economy. By integrating GitHub Copilot into their engineering processes, GoTo equips their teams with the tools to innovate faster, enhance productivity, and ultimately deliver greater user value.”

He added, “Trust and technology go hand-in-hand, and this collaboration underscores our shared commitment to harnessing AI technology, creating meaningful opportunities for all Indonesians, and accelerating an inclusive digital transformation agenda as part of Microsoft’s Empowering Indonesia initiative.”

Meanwhile, Nayana Hodi, engineering manager at GoTo shared, “GitHub Copilot has significantly reduced syntax errors and provided helpful autocomplete features, eliminating repetitive tasks and making coding more efficient. This has allowed me to focus on the more complex elements in building great software.”

Lastly, Sharryn Napier, vice president for APAC at GitHub, stated, “We are thrilled to empower GoTo with GitHub Copilot, equipping their engineers with AI across the software development lifecycle. GoTo has implemented an impressive evaluation strategy, collaborating directly with engineers to collect first-hand measurements that showcase real impact. By quantifying the value of Copilot from the start, GoTo is building strong momentum for widespread adoption and accelerated learning across their engineering team. We’re excited to continue this journey, helping GoTo ship software ahead of the curve and accelerate the pace of innovation.”

Jakarta, Indonesia – After multiple reports suggesting business talks between TikTok and GoTo in Indonesia, TikTok has announced that is investing a total of US$1.5b investment into GoTo. In it, Tokopedia and TikTok Shop Indonesia’s businesses will be combined under the existing PT Tokopedia entity.

In an official statement, both entities have said that this arrangement will allow both TikTok and GoTo to each serve Indonesian consumers and MSMEs more comprehensively.

Moreover, GoTo will benefit from the growth of the enlarged entity and will remain an ecosystem partner to Tokopedia, through its digital financial services via GoTo Financial and on-demand services via Gojek.

Going forward, TikTok, Tokopedia and GoTo will transform Indonesia’s e-commerce sector, creating millions of new job opportunities over the next five years. 

Some of those planned joint ventures include promotion of Indonesian products on Tokopedia and TikTok’s platforms, building the capacity of Indonesia’s MSMEs through a holistic program focusing on skills development, supporting merchants to sell products online, helping local brands to promote their products in international markets, amongst others.

The transaction, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2024, is in line with the GoTo Group’s strategy to strengthen its financial and strategic position by growing its total addressable market.

Moreover, a committee under the enlarged entity will be established to facilitate transition and integration, chaired by GoTo Group CEO Patrick Walujo, with support from members of both businesses.

These talks come after TikTok Shop announced the shutdown of its local operations in Indonesia in October 2023 following local orders. The company was forced to close down after the country’s government passed a regulation prohibiting the use of social media for e-commerce transactions.

Indonesia – ByteDance’s TikTok is reportedly in talks to partner with Indonesian technology company GoTo Group to restart its online retail operations in the country, Bloomberg reports.

According to an insider familiar with the matter, the deal may take the form of a joint venture instead of a direct investment. The two companies’ discussion also involved jointly creating a brand-new e-commerce platform.

While looking for several more options, TikTok is reportedly working to invest in GoTo’s e-commerce arm, Tokopedia, to bring its online shop back to the Indonesian market.

These talks come after TikTok Shop announced the shutdown of its local operations in Indonesia in October 2023 in accordance with local orders. The company was forced to close down after the country’s government passed a regulation prohibiting the use of social media for e-commerce transactions.

It is worth mentioning that the new regulations were placed with the aim of protecting the interests of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME’s). However, the shutdown also meant a loss of livelihood for about 6 million social sellers and 7 million affiliates on TikTok Shop alone.

In an previous exclusive interview with MARKETECH APAC, industry leaders in Indonesia also shared their insights on the future of social commerce in the country after the regulations were set in place.

Rolly Pane, managing director for Indonesia at Clozette, shared that “Social commerce can still be done, promoting products in social and driving people to e-commerce. The only difference is that it will not happen in one ecosystem or app. It just has to cross over apps.”

Pane noted that while the regulation would cause a significant drop in e-commerce transactions originating from social media posts and engagements, brands can still implement alternative strategies to make their social commerce strategies stand out.

Meanwhile, Anish Daryani, founder and president director at M&C Saatchi Indonesia, also believed that social commerce will continue to move forward in Indonesia, adding that there is more growth for the Indonesian social commerce scene compared to more mature markets like China’s.

“Though this regulation would bring social commerce to a stop, there is no stopping commerce from becoming more social,” Daryani told MARKETECH APAC.

Jakarta, Indonesia – Telkomsel Ekosistem Digital, a subsidiary of Indonesian telco Telkomsel has announced a joint venture with Aplikasi Multimedia Anak Bangsa (AMAB), a subsidiary of GoTo. The venture, called Majamojo, will build on the ongoing collaboration between the two local champions, which has already seen the introduction of a number of well-received mobile game promotions in Indonesia.

Majamojo will focus on mobile game development in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. It will look to form partnerships with third-party game developers, while leveraging Telkomsel Ekosistem Digital and GoTo’s strengths, including their digital capabilities, technology assets, and wide-reaching ecosystems.

This is in part of the joint venture’s objective of being the largest gaming publisher in Indonesia, as well as expected to strengthen Indonesia’s gaming industry, and encourage the development of more homegrown digital talent. 

Its efforts will also support Indonesia’s digital transformation and bring the benefits of the digital economy to more people throughout the country.

Andi Kristianto, CEO at Telkomsel Ekosistem Digital, said that they are optimistic about the role Majamojo can play, contributing to the development of the gaming industry and the digital ecosystem in Indonesia and Southeast Asia.

“Majamojo further strengthens Telkomsel Ekosistem Digital’s business, following the incorporation of PT Kuncie Pintar Nusantara (Kuncie) and PT Fita Sehat Nusantara (Fita) into its portfolio. Our goal is to maximise the advantages of Telkomsel’s assets and capabilities to grow Majamojo’s position in the gaming ecosystem, complementing what Dunia Games has covered so far,” Kristianto said.

Meanwhile, Reggy Susanto, head of strategic partnerships at GoTo, commented that by expanding their collaboration with Telkomsel, they will make it even easier for everyone to access digital products and services from GoTo and Telkomsel, so that they can better meet the needs of the growing mobile-first market in Indonesia.

Telkomsel Ekosistem Digital will be the majority shareholder of Mamamojo, with the remaining shares held by AMAB. To accelerate Majamojo’s business strategy, Jungwon Hahn will lead the joint venture as president director and M. Dody Darmawan as finance director.

Hahn explained, “I am excited to lead Mamamojo, which will focus on publishing games and developing the gaming industry locally and regionally. Our mission is to serve gamers with dedication and become a force to be reckoned with in Southeast Asia. We also aim for Majamojo to become a leading company in Indonesia that will strengthen the gaming ecosystem in Indonesia and beyond.”