Jakarta, Indonesia Sentinel — Ride-hailing giant Grab is reinforcing its commitment to user safety by rolling out a new suite of features under its “Grab for Families” service. The new feature allowing parents to stay connected with their children’s Grab accounts in real time.
According to the company, this “Grab for Families” service marks the first family-focused safety solution powered by artificial intelligence (AI) in Southeast Asia.
Philipp Kandal, Chief Product Officer at Grab, introduced the new features during the GrabX launch event in Singapore on Tuesday (April 8), stating that the tools were developed to offer peace of mind to parents whose children travel alone using the platform.
“They can book rides for each other, exchange messages, make payments, and most importantly, ensure one another’s safety by sharing trip details and tracking live locations,” Kandal said.
With the update, parents can monitor their child’s journey in real time and ensure that rides are assigned only to drivers who have undergone a special verification process tailored for transporting teenagers.
“Your teen will only be picked up by drivers who have passed a rigorous selection process. We’ve also built in several layers of security to protect them,” Kandal added.
Among the new safety features are trip verification via PIN codes, real-time ride tracking, and “AudioProtect”. The Audio Protect is a system that uses AI-powered audio monitoring to detect unusual sounds or incidents during a ride. If the system flags a potential issue, an alert is immediately sent to the linked family account.
In more serious situations, the AI system can escalate alerts by contacting local law enforcement directly, providing details such as the passenger’s location and situation.
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Family Account
The “Grab for Families” enhancements and safety features will be available to users across all Grab service areas starting May 2025.
The new features are accessible through the Family Account function, which allows up to 10 users including one admin and nine members to stay connected. The admin can book rides on behalf of other members and communicate with the driver via GrabChat when a family member is in transit.
Admins will also receive automatic real-time notifications and trip updates whenever a Family Account member books a ride. Grab’s latest upgrade aims to set a new standard for tech-enabled family safety in the region’s ride-hailing industry.
(Raidi/Agung)
