Audio and music streaming service, JioSaavn has been ranked as the most innovative company in India, followed by Oyo as per Fast Company’s Indian list of Most Innovative Companies 2019. On the global list of ‘50 Most Innovative Companies 2019’, JioSaavn has been ranked 28 making it the only Indian brand to feature on the global list this year.
According to Fast Company, JioSaavn has topped the list for localizing music streaming, including original content. Oyo made it to the list for expanding its hotel options to appeal to business travelers.
The other companies in India’s most innovative companies include Saathi, RupeeCoin, Ola, Chakr Innovation, ShareChat, Swiggy, Chai Point and Dream11 in the same order.
Founded in 2007 as Saavn, JioSaavn has a catalogue featuring more than 45 million tracks in 15 languages and spanning across genres such as popular Bollywood music, international artists, long-form podcasts, and regional content. In 2018, it merged with Reliance Jio and is now called JioSaavn. “Inspired by Netflix, the company also creates original content with independent artists through its own music label, which it promotes on the platform. Already, the company has had several top-three hits on the iTunes India charts—a rare accomplishment for songs that don’t come from a Bollywood movie soundtrack,” Fast Company says.
With regards to Oyo, Fast Company says that Oyo saw a gap in India’s budget hotel offerings and made it a more viable option for tourists with the use of technology. So far, Oyo has partnered with 8,500 hotels and 70,000 rooms in more than 230 cities, while receiving massive funding from SoftBank.
Saathi has been picked for transforming banana fibers into biodegradable sanitary napkins, while RupeeCoin for redefining new credit score for the unbanked and giving them access to microlending.
Ola features in the list for helping Indians access public transport using technology, Chakr Innovation for reducing diesel emissions by converting soots into inks and paints, ShareChat for bringing the next billion onto social media, Swiggy for finding types of food unavailable locally and delivering them, Chai Point for introducing a Starbucks-like model to chai and serving corporates with a new cloud-based platform and finally Dream11 for turning cricket and kabaddi into fantasy sports.
Speaking on the milestone, Amuleek Singh Bijral, Co-founder and CEO of Chai Point, said, “This ranking is a testament to the work done by our Shark, BoxC, Design and Procurement teams and am sure will motivate all of us within the company to continue to do great work. This gives us further validation of how Chai is a powerful beverage globally and fuels us further, to continue on our mission to fix the broken last mile delivery of the Chai experience in India.”
On a global level, China-based on-demand services platform Meituan Dianping was named the world’s most innovative company, followed by Singapore-based cab-hailing and food delivery major Grab. Walt Disney came fourth while Apple, which topped the list last year, slipped down to the 17th position.