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Uber Lite launched in India & other developing nations
MUMBAI: India is Uber’s most crucial market in Asia! Earlier this year, Uber sold its business in Southeast Asia to local rival Grab.
Now, to tap the consumers in India and other ‘developing’ nations, the ride-sharing app has announced the launch of a lighter version of its app, Uber Lite. Lite will be a simple version of the rider app that saves space, works on any network. Currently, it is only compatible with Android phones, which the majority of the app’s target audience uses.
The app will feature only entry-level specifications and low internet speeds.
Uber Lite is launching first in India, but the company will roll it out in other emerging markets in the future.The app will be initially available in Delhi, Jaipur, and Hyderabad.
Uber Lite is less than 5MB to download, as compared to the regular Uber app’s 181.4MB size and will come with a 300-millisecond response time, where the booking process is fast even in low connectivity.
Uber Lite will also have in-built existing features like in-app support and the ability to share trip with friends and family.
Uber Lite was designed to make booking rides easier and quicker in spotty connectivity and slower than average internet speeds, on basic Android phones, and for people with limited data plans. Uber Lite guides users through the request experience by detecting their current location, so minimal typing is required. If it can’t detect your location because of GPS or network issues, it will surface popular pickup points nearby from you to choose from.
To keep the app light and fast, maps in Uber Lite are optional, but available with just a tap if you want them. Going forward Uber will also include the option to request a ride even when offline.
The lite app looks like a great add-on for users who still have a smartphone with 2G or slow speed connections. In January this year, Ola launched its Lite app that takes only 1MB of download space and offers a stripped down version of its designs and features.
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IICT partners with Gativedhi to bring studio production tools to students
New MoU lets students explore AI-driven production pipelines for AVGC-XR
MUMBAI: The Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) has teamed up with Gativedhi Technologies to give students a front-row seat to modern studio production. The collaboration will integrate Gativedhi’s AI-powered production intelligence platform, Shotrack, into academic programmes, letting students experience the workflow systems used by animation, VFX and gaming studios.
Under the MoU, faculty, students and researchers will get hands-on access to Shotrack through beta programmes, pilot deployments and academic evaluations. This will allow them to explore simulated production pipelines, understand asset management, track tasks and monitor schedules, essentially seeing how complex projects come together behind the scenes.
Shotrack is designed to tackle a key industry challenge: when multiple studios work on the same project, differing internal systems often create bottlenecks, slow approvals and complicate version control. The platform provides a unified production environment, enabling smoother collaboration across distributed teams while generating operational insights and predictive analytics to optimise crew allocation, forecast schedule risks and manage costs.
The collaboration also opens doors to Gativedhi’s wider ecosystem. Upcoming tools include StudioTrack, for studio operations management covering budgeting, recruitment and IT infrastructure, and WorkTrack, which measures workflow efficiency and team productivity across industries.
IICT plans to embed these tools into programmes covering animation pipelines, VFX workflows, gaming production and media project management. Students will also benefit from guest lectures, masterclasses, workshops, internships and research projects that connect academic learning with real-world studio practices.
IICT CEO Vishwas Deoskar, said the partnership provides “An environment where production pipeline tools can be explored, tested and refined while students gain insight into how large-scale productions are organised.”
Gativedhi Technologies founder & CEO Senthil Kumar added, “This collaboration introduces students to real-world studio management tools and helps us improve our platform with academic feedback.”
With Shotrack in classrooms, India’s future animators, VFX artists and gaming producers will get a taste of studio life long before they step into one.
