Quick commerce’s second act in Indonesia

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In focus

• ​​Why quick commerce’s resurgence in Indonesia is not about speed
• ​​Tracking AI firms’ hiring and expansion in Singapore
• SoftBank taps bond market to fund US$10 billion OpenAI investment

Hello reader,

Instant delivery is increasingly becoming the norm on ecommerce platforms in Indonesia. I found myself choosing this option with all my orders lately.

I don’t need PS5 discs or clothes so urgently that they need to arrive at my doorstep ASAP. But the relatively affordable instant delivery fees are hard to resist, thanks to the generous discounts offered by platforms.

It’s no surprise that other players are following suit: Shopee and Blibli, for example, recently launched their own services, promising delivery within 30 minutes to an hour.

They’ve joined the ranks of several earlier quick commerce entrants including Gojek’s GoMart, GrabMart, KlikIndomaret, and Alfamart’s Alfagift. That leaves Astro as the only pure-play quick commerce company still operating in Indonesia today.

In today’s Top Story, I look at Indonesia’s latest quick commerce model, which no longer relies on running dark stores or a large number of hubs. Instead of making such significant investments, platforms are tapping into existing merchant and logistics networks to power their services.

While this second-wave model looks more economically viable, its profitability is unproven.

Meanwhile, last week’s Tech in Asia Conference in Singapore showed just how strong the enthusiasm for AI is in the city-state. At the same time, Anthropic announced that it will open an office in Singapore next month.

My colleague Duc tracked which AI companies have set up shop in the country and what roles they are hiring for. These moves reinforce Singapore’s position as Southeast Asia’s leading AI hub.

Jofie Yordan, journalist

Top Story

Quick commerce’s latest resurgence in Indonesia looks different

Image credit: Ulla

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