AI adoption is no longer optional but essential. That’s the rallying cry of Grab co-founder and CEO Anthony Tan, who is embracing artificial intelligence with open arms – both in business and in his personal life.

At Converge Live in Singapore, he made his stance crystal clear: “Humans who don’t embrace AI in a company will be replaced by humans who embrace AI.”

The same will apply to companies, he said. “I really believe that, if you were to embrace it, it not only makes you superhuman, it makes your company superhuman.”

This philosophy isn’t just rhetoric. Tan, who launched Grab in 2012 and grew it into Southeast Asia’s most widely used ride-hailing platform, is integrating AI into multiple aspects of the company’s operations.

One standout example is Grab Academy, an AI-driven educational platform designed for its driver-partners. The built-in AI assistant helps drivers secure more job opportunities with other companies while simultaneously reducing wait times for passengers.

For Tan, AI is an enabler. “AI shouldn’t be feared. AI should be embraced, helping all our workers, all our everyday entrepreneurs become superhuman,” he said.

Also Read: An inside look at Grab's people culture

Building a data-powered empire

Grab has evolved far beyond ride-hailing. Today, it operates as an “everything app,” offering food and grocery deliveries, as well as financial services like digital banking and lending. In 2024, the company generated US$2.8 billion in revenue – a 19% jump from the previous year.

Today, as AI reshapes a wide range of industries, businesses like Grab are adapting quickly lest they risk obsolescence.

Tan is already ahead of this curve, using AI not just to streamline operations but to enhance his own productivity. While he doesn’t code, he employs an AI-powered assistant for research and side projects.

“I can’t code myself, but I use it to build my own projects, for research, for Grab,” the Malaysian entrepreneur said. “It can totally change how you spend time and how productive you can be. That’s what has helped me.”

However, Tan is not content with personal gains – he wants the entire organisation to benefit.

“[My] being superhuman is insufficient. I need to think about all 7,000-plus of us becoming superhuman,” he said.

The AI sprint that ‘moved the needle’ for Grab

To accelerate AI adoption, Tan took an unconventional approach: he hit the brakes on all business-as-usual operations and initiated a company-wide “generative AI sprint” lasting nine weeks.

“People thought I was crazy – maybe I am – but it really moved the needle,” he admitted.

One major outcome of this initiative was the development of an AI-powered Merchant Menu Assistant. Designed for Grab’s vendors, the tool extracts data from a physical menu and seamlessly uploads it to the app.

This innovation holds particular significance for small business owners, such as home cooks in Jakarta who rely on Grab to reach customers.

“So, think about a single mother making food in a home in Jakarta,” Tan said. “Now she has an assistant that helps her as a sous chef, as a packaging assistant, as a chief revenue officer, all in one. That helps business, but also helps drive that vision of empowering everyday entrepreneurs all at the same time.”

AI’s disruptive influence on software development

While AI’s impact on the gig economy is undeniable, it is also reshaping software development at a staggering pace.

Dario Amodei, CEO of AI research firm Anthropic, predicts that within six months, AI could write 90% of all code.

This forecast has triggered a debate about the future of software engineering. Some argue that AI lacks the creativity and problem-solving skills of human developers, particularly when tackling complex system architectures.

Others see this shift as an opportunity – pushing developers into more strategic roles focused on oversight, system design, and ethical programming.

Also Read: A bigger threat to your job than AI

Concerns about job displacement are mounting. However, Microsoft’s Work Trend Index, for example, indicates that demand for AI expertise is skyrocketing, with professionals scrambling to upskill. Instead of eliminating roles, AI may be redefining them.

Arvind Krishna, IBM’s chief executive officer, offers a more measured outlook on AI’s impact on coding. He pushed back against such projection and argued AI will likely generate only 20% to 30% of all code – not 90%.

“I think the number is going to be more like 20-30% of the code could get written by AI—not 90%,” he stated.

Krishna acknowledged AI’s ability to handle routine coding tasks but stressed how human programmers remain indispensable for complex problem-solving.

The IBM leader sees AI not as a job killer but as a productivity booster. “If you can do 30% more code with the same number of people, are you going to get more code written or less? Because history has shown that the most productive company gains market share, and then you can produce more products, which lets you get more market share,” he explained.

This perspective aligns with historical patterns. Just as calculators didn’t replace mathematicians and Photoshop didn’t eliminate artists, AI is unlikely to render programmers obsolete. Instead, it promises to elevate their capabilities, making them more efficient and valuable than ever before.

Adapt or be left behind

With the AI revolution under way, businesses must either harness its potential or risk falling by the wayside. Leaders like Tan and Krishna are demonstrating that AI is not about replacing humans but amplifying their abilities.

For Grab, AI is driving efficiencies and unlocking new opportunities for workers and entrepreneurs. In the software industry, it’s streamlining development but also shifting the role of engineers.

While fears of job displacement persist, history suggests that technological advancements tend to create new opportunities rather than simply erasing old ones.

As Tan advised: “AI shouldn’t be feared. AI should be embraced.”