Hello, this is Akito from Singapore. With the Covid-19 restrictions over the past few years, delivery apps have become a staple service in our lives, and they are still improving fast.

One of the most common delivery apps here is Grab. I ordered a few snacks at a Japanese food store about three kilometres away from my house, and it took about 45 minutes for Grab’s rider to deliver. When I lived in Tokyo, I used Uber Eats frequently. Again, it took more than 30 minutes for the items I ordered at a convenience store in my neighbourhood to arrive.

Singapore and Tokyo are mature metropolises with relatively low traffic congestion and a well-oiled delivery network. I can only look and marvel at what is happening in the urban areas of India, where fierce competition has driven delivery times down much further.