How Bhavish Aggarwal Built Ola Cabs into India’s Largest Ride-Hailing Company

Major Events Of Bhavish Aggarwal’s Life

1985: Bhavish Aggarwal was born on August 28 in Ludhiana, Punjab, India.

2003: Aggarwal graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay.

2006: Aggarwal joined Microsoft Research in Bangalore as an assistant research manager.

2010: While on a trip to Bandipur in Karnataka, Aggarwal and his friend Ankit Bhati were stranded without transportation. This incident inspired them to start Ola Cabs, a ride-hailing platform that would make it easier for people to get around.

2011: Aggarwal and Bhati launched Ola Cabs in Mumbai, initially as a taxi aggregator service. The company quickly expanded to other cities, including Bangalore, Delhi, Chennai, and Pune.

2014: Ola Cabs raised $210 million in funding from SoftBank, making it one of the largest investments ever in an Indian startup.

2015: Ola Cabs acquired its rival TaxiForSure for $200 million, further consolidating its position in the Indian ride-hailing market.

2016: Ola Cabs expanded its offerings to include Ola Shuttle, a bus aggregator service that provided affordable and reliable transportation to commuters in select cities.

2017: Ola Cabs launched its electric vehicle (EV) program, with the aim of bringing one million EVs on the road by 2021. The company also launched Ola Play, an in-car entertainment platform that provided passengers with a range of entertainment and personalized services.

2018: Ola Cabs raised $1.1 billion in funding from Tencent Holdings, SoftBank, and other investors, valuing the company at $7.5 billion.

2019: Aggarwal was featured on Forbes India’s list of the richest Indians with a net worth of $1.6 billion.

2021: Ola Cabs filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The IPO is expected to raise up to $1.2 billion.

2022: Ola Cabs was listed on the Indian stock exchanges, with its IPO being oversubscribed by over two times. The company’s market capitalization crossed $20 billion, making it one of the most valuable companies in India.

Bhavish Aggarwal is an Indian entrepreneur and the co-founder of Ola Cabs, one of the largest ride-hailing platforms in India. Throughout his career, Bhavish Aggarwal has been recognized for his contributions to the Indian startup ecosystem. He has received numerous awards and honors, including the Entrepreneur of the Year award at the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence in 2017, and the NDTV Indian of the Year award in the Business category in 2018.