Rapido faces app outage as ride booking issue hit users

On August 27, ride-hailing platform Rapido experienced a technical disruption that affected its users across India. Users reported issues such as booking rides, selecting destinations, loading addresses, and accessing parts of the app via the social media platform X. Real-time monitoring service Downtime Detector recorded a surge in user complaints, with reports originating from major cities including Delhi, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Haryana.

The complaints ranged from location failures to login problems and server errors. However, the service-status page did not confirm any confirmed outages, indicating widespread user issues without specifying the geographic scale or technical cause of the disruption.

Rapido, one of India's largest one-stop mobility platforms, later confirmed that its services had returned to normal following the outage. This incident occurred at a time when the mobility platform is intensifying its focus on technology, supply, and expansion across the country. In May, Rapido raised $240 million in primary funding led by Prosus, as part of a broader $730 million round of primary and secondary financing that valued the company at $3 billion.

The new capital was earmarked for expanding into high-growth markets, enhancing its captain network, and investing in technology and platform efficiency.

The current expansion is taking place amid growing competition in India's cities. In August, rival Uber announced plans to add 100 new Indian cities to its service, bringing its total to 225 cities. Uber emphasized the importance of reliability and affordability in retaining customers in these emerging markets, indicating a competitive landscape where service quality and accessibility are becoming increasingly pivotal.