inDrive Expands Ads, Loans and Delivery Beyond Ride Hailing
inDrive expands ads to 25 markets, tests prepared food delivery and grows driver loans 118%, seeking more spending from its emerging market ride base.
Summary
Mountain View based inDrive, whose fare negotiating ride service competes with Uber, operates in more than 1,200 cities across 48 countries. Piloted in July 2025 and introduced across its top 20 markets in January 2026, inDrive.Ads now covers 25 markets, has served more than 2 billion impressions and attracts over 2,000 paying advertisers monthly, with about two thirds returning. Ride Media targets passengers while they wait and travel using places visited during a specified period, with real time targeting planned. Former Google executive Max Silin, who spent over 11 years there, now leads ads.
In 2025, 13% of monthly transacting users combined mobility with at least one delivery service. Latin American driver loans through inDrive.money increased 118% year over year in the first half of 2026; its short term credit operates in Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Brazil and Indonesia under Alexander Kurchin. Valentin Laykov was promoted to lead delivery. Former Delivery Hero executive Raphael Zennou, who helped oversee quick commerce serving 21 million monthly customers, joined as vice president of food and groceries.
inDrive is testing prepared food delivery with partners, but the trials remain early and details are limited. Chief growth business officer Andries Smit said ads, financial services and delivery require relatively little capital, while groceries and food will receive most investment and create additional advertising inventory. Funding, revenue, overall financial contribution and a timetable for ads to become material remain undisclosed.
Positives
- inDrive.Ads has surpassed 2 billion impressions across 25 markets since its July 2025 pilot.
- More than 2,000 advertisers pay monthly, and about two thirds are repeat customers.
- 13% of monthly transacting users combined mobility and delivery services during 2025.
- inDrive.money driver loans in Latin America grew 118% year over year during the first half of 2026.
- Max Silin and Raphael Zennou bring extensive Google and Delivery Hero experience to ads, food and groceries.
Risks & concerns
- Advertising revenue, its share of company revenue and its timetable for becoming material remain undisclosed.
- Prepared food delivery tests remain at an early stage, with inDrive declining to provide further details.
- Ride Media currently relies on historical place visits because real time targeting is not yet available.
- Groceries and food will consume most investment, although inDrive has not disclosed the capital earmarked for expansion.
- Ride hailing offers relatively thin economics, increasing pressure to make newer services financially significant.
