SINGAPORE: Singapore-based Grab Holdings, Southeast Asia’s leading ride-hailing and food delivery app, is cutting 1,000 jobs or 11% of its workforce, its CEO said on Tuesday, citing the need to manage costs and ensure more affordable services long term.

In a letter sent to employees late on Tuesday and seen by Reuters, chief executive Anthony Tan said the cuts, the biggest since the start of the pandemic, were not “a shortcut to profitability” but a strategic reorganisation to adapt to the business environment.

“Change has never been this fast. Technology such as generative AI (artificial intelligence) is evolving at breakneck speed. The cost of capital has gone up, directly impacting the competitive landscape,” Tan said in the letter.

“We must combine our scale with nimble execution and cost leadership, so that we can sustainably offer even more affordable services and deepen our penetration of the masses.” Tan said that even without layoffs, Grab had managed costs and should hit its target for group adjusted EBITDA breakeven this year.

The “superapp”, founded in 2012, offers deliveries, rides and financial services in eight Southeast Asian countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.