INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Google is turning startup investor to further its goal of putting Google services like search, maps, and its voice assistant front and
center for the next billion internet users in emerging markets
It has invested $22 million into KaiOS, the company that has built an eponymous operating system for feature phones that packs a range of
native apps and other smartphone-like services
As part of the investment, KaiOS will be working on integrating Google services like search, maps, YouTube and its voice assistant into more
KaiOS devices, after initially announcing Google apps for KaiOS-powered Nokia phones earlier this year.
&This funding will help us
fast-track development and global deployment ofKaiOS-enabled smart feature phones, allowing us to connect the vast population that
stillcannot access the internet, especially in emerging markets,& said KaiOS CEO Sebastien Codeville in a statement.
Our mobile world is
dominated today by smartphones: there were about 1.6 billion of them sold last year
But feature phones have continued to move, too: it estimated that there were about 450 million-500 million of them shipped in 2017
And their sales are actually growing faster right now than their souped-up cousins.
KaiOS-powered phones play squarely in the latter
category, and they are gaining traction in markets where feature phones still hold sway
In India, they have overtaken Apple iOS to become the second-most popular devices after Android handsets.KaiOS tells us that there have been
more than 40 million KaiOS phones shipped to-date.
Google KaiOS investment could be seen as a way of introducing its services to feature
phone users who might eventually graduate to smartphones
However, there is also scope for holding on to these users even as they stay in the feature phone category, which continues to evolve and
become more functional.
&We&re excited to work with Google to deliver its services on more mobile devices,& said Codeville, the KaiOS CEO
&Having an intelligent voice assistant on an affordable mobile phone is truly revolutionary as it helps overcome some of the limitations a
keypad brings.&
A Nokia device running KaiOS
KaiOS is a U.S.-based project that started in 2017, built on the ashes of Mozilla failed
Firefox OS experiment, as a fork of the Linux codebase
Firefox OS was intended to be the basis of a new wave of HTML-5, low-cost smartphones
And while those devices and the wider ecosystem never really took off, KaiOS has fared significantly better.
KaiOS powers phones made by
OEMs including Nokia (HMD), Micromax andAlcatel, and it works with carriers includingSprint and ATT — it counts offices in North America,
But its most significant deployment to date has been with India Reliance Jio, the challenger telco that disrupted the Indian market with
affordable 4G data packages.
Reliance Jio offers its own range of KaiOS handsets, and coupling that with its low-cost data packages, KaiOS&
share of India phone market has reportedly jumped to 15 percent — overtaking Apple iOS in the process and putting it second behind only
(Jio own devices have actually increased the number of feature phones in India, such has been its impact in the country.)
That market share
alone in a high-growth market like India is likely enough to pique Google interest.
&We want to ensure that Google apps and services are
available to everyone, whether they are using desktops, smartphones, or feature phones.& said Anjali Joshi, VP of Product Management for
Google Next Billion Users division, in a statement
&Following the success of the JioPhones, we are excited to work with KaiOS to further improve access to information for feature phone users
around the world.&
Beyond this, the Next Billion business unit works on customizing the Google experience and services to fit the needs of
new internet users in emerging markets, including the launch of new services like thisneighborhoods app and a successful public WiFi
program.
While Google continues to develop its Android smartphone platform, it has long been an advocate of expanding its services to other
platforms, too, and that been the case with KaiOS.
In February, KaiOS announced that it would be adding Google Search, Google Maps and the
Google Voice Assistant to the new Nokia 8110 feature phone, and it seems that this is the Google agreement that will be expanded to all
models as part of Google investment.
To be clear, Google services are not the only ones on KaiOS
Itadded apps for Twitter and Facebook earlier this year, and it mixes dedicated KaiOS apps — WhatsApp is said to be coming — with others
that are more basic HTML-5 web apps.
Google investment in KaiOS is the latest in a line of direct startup deals from the U.S
tech giant that sit alongside investments made by GV and CapitalG, its two investment arms
Google has also backed concierge service Dunzoand is partnering with the carrier Orange to make investments and potentially acquire startups
in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Google is quietly formulating a new strategy for China
