Saikrishna Ch

Zomato's District: A Risky Bet on the Super App Model Zomato's foray into the "going out" economy with District mirrors Paytm's super app strategy. While Paytm's 350M+ user base is substantial, its path to profitability remains elusive. Zomato, with 100M+ users, enters a highly competitive market dominated by players like BookMyShow. Replicating Paytm's model is challenging. Integrating diverse services, achieving effective cross-selling, and ensuring positive unit economics are critical hurdles. Zomato's strong brand in food delivery provides a foundation, but the execution risks in this new venture are significant. The company must balance growth with profitability to avoid diluting its core business. #Zomato #District #Paytm #SuperApp #Fintech #ConsumerTech #MarketAnalysis

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So Air India express has started advertisinf in overhead bins. Good. But to my PM/PMM head, this leads to zero outcome for the advertiser and the consumer consuming this info. Except a hit of brand recall. What’s the job to be done here? How do I remember which phone I saw in the plane? What are the attributes of the product? Why should I even consume this content? A better use of real estate? Add a simple QR code next to the image that allows you to checkout and buy the advertised product, to be hand-delivered to you at your destination. That would be an aha! Moment. #jtbd #designthinking #producmanagement

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CLSA published a detailed research report on India quick commerce. Recommended reading. Who will be the first to create a $50-100Bn company in India internet? #Zepto #Zomato #IndiaInternet

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How does Product Analytics Work? Let us understand how popular tools like Mixpanel, Amplitude, CleverTap, Fullstory, MoEngage, WebEngage etc. work under the hood. Story: The other day I wanted to order Noodles 🍜 for myself and like most of you I headed to our beloved app Swiggy 🚴🏽‍♂️ (sorry Zomato) Here is the journey that I followed: 1️⃣ Open the app 2️⃣ Search for Noodles 3️⃣ Click on one of the restaurants 4️⃣ Add to cart 5️⃣ Apply Coupon 6️⃣ Make Payment 7️⃣ (Im)Patiently wait for the order To make my experience better ❤️ and get me to spend more money on the app 🤑, the product managers at Swiggy need this data. The analytical tools will help the Swiggy team: ⤴ Capture these interactions 📦 Store these interactions ✨ Create reports from these interactions The developers embed a code in the app, which sends the important interactions (app open, clicks, screen change) to these tools. These tools process and store the data at their end. These tools give you a friendly interface to get simple and advanced reports like: 👉🏽 Funnel - How people are moving from one step in journey to another. PMs can Discover any blockers. 👉🏽 Trends - How feature usage is growing or decreasing. 👉🏽 Segments - Creating and analysing various user groups based on behaviour, demographics etc. 👉🏽 Cohort Analysis - Are people engaged in the app, retention quality. and many more. The interactions are sent in the form of events. Each event contains a name and properties to contain any additional information about the event. For example: Button Click event might contains properties like text on button, operation system, app version etc. Similarly user information is also sent and store to relate events with particular users. User information is also arranged in the form of properties, for example: A user can have name, location, favorite restaurant etc. While tools like Mixpanel, MoEngage and other provide out of box solutions for product analytics, many capable teams also choose to do this by their own by following stack: 1. Event Capture from app: Plain Javascript, React, Angular etc. 2. Event Storage and Streaming: MYSQL, Mongo, Kafka etc. 3. Visualization: PowerBI, Redash, Metabase etc. Thats a 101 on how product analytics tools work. Want to know more? You can do these 3 things 👇🏽 1. Become confident in modern technology with our 6 week live program (early bird expiring soon): https://lnkd.in/dsHBqtyg 2. Grab other Tech Made Easy posts from my profile on APIs, Webhooks, Databases and more 👉🏽 Ankit Shukla (#TechMadeEasy) 3. Repost this, to help your network and support #TechMadeEasy. In the next post I will talk about: "How to answer Technical Questions in a Product Management Interview". #productmanagement

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How does Product Analytics Work? Let us understand how popular tools like Mixpanel, Amplitude, CleverTap, Fullstory, MoEngage, WebEngage etc. work under the hood. Story: The other day I wanted to order Noodles 🍜 for myself and like most of you I headed to our beloved app Swiggy🚴🏽‍♂️ (sorry Zomato) Here is the journey that I followed: 1️⃣ Open the app 2️⃣ Search for Noodles 3️⃣ Click on one of the restaurants 4️⃣ Add to cart 5️⃣ Apply Coupon 6️⃣ Make Payment 7️⃣ (Im)Patiently wait for the order To make my experience better ❤️ => Get me to spend more money on the app 🤑, the product managers at Swiggy need this data. The right analytical tools will help the Swiggy team: ⤴ Capture these interactions 📦 Store these interactions ✨ Create reports from these interactions 💡 Take the right action The developers embed a code in the app, which sends the important interactions (app open, clicks, screen change) to these tools. These tools process and store the data at their end. These tools give you a friendly interface to get simple and advanced reports like: 👉🏽 Funnel - How people are moving from one step in journey to another. PMs can Discover any blockers. 👉🏽 Trends - How feature usage is growing or decreasing. 👉🏽 Segments - Creating and analysing various user groups based on behaviour, demographics etc. 👉🏽 Cohort Analysis - Are people engaged in the app, retention quality. and many more. The interactions are sent in the form of events. Each event contains a name and properties to contain any additional information about the event. For example: Button Click event might contains properties like text on button, operation system, app version etc. Similarly user information is also sent and store to relate events with particular users. User information is also arranged in the form of properties, for example: A user can have name, location, favorite restaurant etc. While tools like Mixpanel, MoEngage and other provide out of box solutions for product analytics, many capable teams also choose to do this by their own by following stack: 1. Event Capture from app: Plain Javascript, React, Angular etc. 2. Event Storage and Streaming: MYSQL, Mongo, Kafka etc. 3. Visualization: PowerBI, Redash, Metabase etc. Thats a 101 on how product analytics tools work. Want to know more? You can do these 3 things 👇🏽 1. Become confident in modern technology with our 6 week live program (early bird expiring soon): https://lnkd.in/dAqHi9ih 2. Grab other Tech Made Easy posts from my profile on APIs, Webhooks, Databases and more 👉🏽 Ankit Shukla (#TechMadeEasy) 3. Repost this, to help your network and support #TechMadeEasy. #productmanagement

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Ola's CEO Bhavish Aggarwal may have single-handedly ruined their brand reputation over a petty Twitter argument. When Kunal Kamra, a comedian, complained about their EV service issues online, Bhavish decided to publicly and personally humiliate him (or at least try to), instead of addressing his complaints. It was a masterclass in how NOT to handle criticism, and he's being flamed for it now. But I have a confession: I've been there too. 10 years ago, when I was just starting out as a COO at OSSCube, an ex-team member seemed to have copied our business model. My response? I publicly called them a "thief." Big mistake. Huge. Not only did it escalate the situation, but it also exposed my vulnerability and undermined my professionalism. It didn't go down well, but it taught me something important: Sometimes, the most powerful thing a leader can do is... nothing. Here's what I mean: 1. Know when to step back: Your instinct might be to jump in and defend your company. Resist it. Let your PR team handle it. They're professionals for a reason. 2. Empower your team: When you swoop in to handle every criticism, you're telling your team you don't trust them. Give them the space to shine. 3. Actions speak louder than tweets: Keep your focus on solving problems, not spotlighting them. A fixed issue is worth a thousand witty comebacks. 4. Remember who's watching: It's not just about the critic. Your employees, customers, and aspiring entrepreneurs are all taking notes on how you treat people and handle pressure. True leadership isn't about having the last word. It's about knowing when to speak, when to listen, and when to let your actions do the talking. So, the next time you're tempted to fire off that spicy reply to a critic, pause. Ask yourself: "What kind of leader do I want to be remembered as?" #leadership #ola #PR

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"The average disposable income of Bihar is lower than Bangalore etc. Don’t you think that will play into what sort of QSR should be built in Bihar right now?" I got this question recently in response to my recommendation for considering an investment into Cafe Hideout, who in my mind are building a land-grab in Patna and can perhaps dominate eastern India in next 3-5 years. I was reminded of Rory Sutherland's perspective of the horizontal and the vertical way to look at data. Clearly, BLR has a much higher average disposable income than Patna (and most parts of eastern India). No doubt about it. But simply looking at the average misses the skewed data from Patna and other eastern states. Patna has about half a million folks with disposable income higher than BLR imo and abou 5 million folks who are at the bottom of the per capita GDP table. If we only look at the average, we will miss the opportunity to think of the needs of the top half million (which is a big number) completely. BTW, their aspiration is to have a lifestyle which matches the top 0.5% of folks in T1 cities. Aspirations are changing everywhere in Bihar as the Digital Desh team has discovered (you can read their insights and research at https://lnkd.in/gYFyk7BE. The report is free to download. Thanks Jasminder Singh Gulati for the coverage). Bihar is changing. And boy does it have size to turn on the momentum.

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Here is the IDC Report for India Phone Market Q2 2024 Some Insights iQOO Finally Entered in top 10 Motorola got 7th Postion Ahead of POCO Apple is at No. 6 Vivo at No.1 Oneplus is at 9th Postion constantly loosing market share in 2024

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There’s definitely a bigger picture at play here, where the broader ecosystem—whether it’s the companies themselves or the enablers and investors—often focus on short-term targets, sometimes at the cost of long-term strategic thinking. This is especially true when the pressures of scaling quickly or meeting quarterly results are intense. However, it’s encouraging to see the shift happening in the Indian startup ecosystem, especially with the recent government initiatives that aim to foster innovation and create a strong product-driven economy. The goal of making India a “true product nation” is crucial because, ultimately, it’s the companies that innovate and create valuable products, rather than just services, that can lead to sustainable growth and global recognition. With more long-term focus, the mindset towards “product-first” thinking will definitely start to evolve. It’s exciting to see this transition, but as mentioned by Harish Wadhwa sir, patience and boldness are key. We need stakeholders—both within companies and in the supporting ecosystem—to embrace that change, support innovation, and allow space for those long-term bets to materialize. It might take time, but the direction is promising. We at Reslink are grateful to partner with partner like EPIC Foundation, India who share the same Vision. Harish Wadhwa Ajai Chowdhry

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𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐙𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐨'𝐬 $5 𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞? 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐈 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬! Zepto's recent $340 million fundraise at a $5 billion valuation is a bold investment on Indian urban consumer. But why are VCs willing to pay such a high price? In my view, it's all about "𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞". We're seeing a shift in consumer behavior, especially among the top 1-2% of urban consumers. This shift towards quick commerce seems irreversible, and over the long term, if consumers continue to pay delivery charges, this deal could be a real bargain. Fundamentally, ecommerce grew big because of 3 reasons. Consumers want cheaper goods, high selection and at a faster pace. Quick commerce, ticks two of these points and is already offering large enough selection for daily needs. Here's how I see Zepto compared to DMart: Zepto is currently at $1.5 billion annualized sales rate, 400 dark stores. Raised $665M at $3.6B valuation in June 2024, followed by $340M at $5B valuation, 3.3x annual sales. DMart (2017): Raised 1870 Cr at ~$2.7B valuation, ~1.6x annual sales. Currently valued at ~$38B with 5% profit net margins. Current sales are at $6 B. So why are the VCs betting so confidently on Zepto? Quick commerce growth rate is outpacing traditional retail. Zepto can personalize at scale—higher SKU count leads to better experiences. Higher margin products give them an edge over brick-and-mortar stores. Sure, the next 3-5 years will require substantial burn, and competition will increase, driving up CAC. But early entrants like Zepto have an advantage in forming consumer habits. If they can continue delivering and eventually pass delivery charges onto customers, Zepto's cost structure could align with larger brick and mortar players. Indian retail market will hit 1 Trillion USD by 2027 and there is enough space for all forms of organized retail players and unorganized too. IMO, no format will get disrupted but quick commerce will be a niche of it's own, possibly grabbing some share from ecommerce. What do you think about the deal? ---Kindly note that these are my personal views and do not represent my employer's views.

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Why you should hire a standup comedian for your startup? Think about it, it totally makes sense, fundamentals of a standup comic who makes jokes are same as a product manager who deeply understands user insight into building a product. A standup comedian would pick the most common pains of our lives, empathize with them and think of a creative way to present it to the audience. Making jokes is kind of like making new products for people to use. First, you have to understand what problems they have or what would make their lives easier or more fun. Then you have to come up with creative ideas to solve those problems, just like comedians come up with creative jokes. Comedians are also really good at trying out their jokes with audiences. If a joke doesn't work, they'll change it until people start laughing. That's like how product managers try out new products with customers. If the customers don't like it, the company makes changes(iterations) until they get it right.

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🌟 🎯 Guesstimate Mastery: What I Learned from a Meta PM 🌟 I recently participated in a mock interview session organized by HelloPM, led by Sugat Nayak, a seasoned Product Manager at Meta. Alongside him was Kshitij Anand, an MBA candidate at IIM-B, who shared valuable insights. Together, they walked through the process of solving guesstimate questions, an essential skill for PM interviews. 👉 How to Approach Guesstimate Questions: 1️⃣ Clarifying Questions First: Before jumping in, always ask clarifying questions to understand the scope, timeframes, or data points. This ensures you’re aligned with the interviewer’s expectations. 2️⃣ Start with a Structured Framework: Break the problem into key variables and start with a high-level estimate. A structured approach helps you organize your thoughts and gives clarity to the interviewer. 3️⃣ Make Assumptions & Communicate Them Clearly: Assumptions are inevitable. Make them, but ensure transparency. For example, if you assume certain traffic patterns or user behavior, be sure to explain your reasoning. 4️⃣ Estimate with Reasonable Numbers: Use real-world numbers that make sense. When estimating user numbers, market sizes, or other figures, ground them in logic. If something doesn’t feel right, pause and reassess your approach. 5️⃣ Test Your Answer: After arriving at an estimate, check it using a different method. For example, test your market size estimate with another metric to see if it aligns. This helps verify your calculations. 6️⃣ Consider Variations and Patterns: Think about how factors like time of day, seasonality, or events can shift your numbers. For instance, weekends, holidays, or product launches might affect sales. Acknowledge these nuances in your thought process. 7️⃣ What to Do If the Topic Is Unfamiliar: If the topic is new, apply your problem-solving skills. Use analogies from areas you're familiar with and walk through the logic step by step. Your approach matters more than prior knowledge. 👉 Things to Note While Preparing: 1️⃣ Practice Regularly: The more you practice, the more comfortable you'll get. Dedicate time to work through different guesstimate problems to improve your problem-solving skills. 2️⃣ Familiarize with Common Scenarios: Many guesstimates revolve around market sizes, user numbers, or revenue estimates. Know the typical ranges for these factors across industries. 3️⃣ Sharpen Your Mental Math: Quick mental math saves time during interviews. While exact calculations aren’t expected, being able to estimate quickly and accurately is essential. A huge thank you to Sugat Nayak for leading the session, Kshitij Anand for the valuable feedback, and Aakash Pandey for organizing this insightful experience. I’d love to hear your thoughts! How do you approach guesstimate questions? What methods have worked for you in interviews? Let’s discuss in the comments! #ProductManagement #PMInterviews #Guesstimate #Hellopm #MockInterview #CareerGrowth #PMCommunity

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Near duopoly in telecom in India is hurting customers. Have paid a deposit to airtel for installing 2 Mesh but even after 8 weekes there is no update. Their customer support on app (essentially a bot which does not understand much) is pathetic. Their customer support exec are hard to reach- inspite of taped audio messages "this call is important to us, blah blah..." I've even writeen to their CEO, but no response. And BTW their broadband service keeps breaking down frequently. Jio takes a deposit to even register an enquiry for broadband connecttion, which we have paid. 3 weeks since, but no sign of any update from them about installation of the new connection. Govt. of India should worry about how will we achieve our digital goals if we have to depend on these companies. Ashwini Vaishnaw Sir. #TelecomIndia #Duopoly #DigitalIndia #Airtel #Jio

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#QuickCommerce: A Boon or Bubble? The rapid rise of quick commerce players like #Swiggy, #Zomato, and #Zepto has undeniably transformed how we shop, making instant gratification the new norm. The industry, valued at over $80 billion globally, is expected to grow by 25-30% annually, driven by urban millennials and #GenZ’s appetite for on-demand services. Yet, there’s a storm brewing on the horizon. #UdayKotak, an influential voice in the financial industry, recently issued a cautionary warning about the sustainability of the quick commerce model. Here are some key points that raise concerns: 1. Cash Burn and Profitability Challenges: Despite impressive growth rates, the majority of quick commerce firms are struggling with profitability. Data shows that companies like Swiggy and Zomato have been spending 4-5x more than their revenues just to acquire and retain customers. 2. Logistical and Operational Strain: While 10-minute deliveries sound appealing, they come with a cost. The logistics infrastructure required is both expensive and complex, often relying on heavily subsidized delivery models. This raises questions about how sustainable this race for speed truly is. 3. Investor Fatigue: Venture capital funding, which fueled much of the industry’s growth, is beginning to show signs of hesitation. With valuation corrections and demands for a clearer path to profitability, the pressure on these startups is mounting. 4. Consumer Behavior and Economic Pressures: While the convenience is unmatched, there’s a limit to how much consumers will pay for speed. Economic uncertainties and rising inflation may shift spending habits, making ultra-fast delivery less attractive when discretionary spending is squeezed. 5. Regulatory Concerns: Kotak highlighted a crucial point: the political and regulatory landscape could change drastically if these companies start impacting small, local businesses. With potential regulations on the horizon, the industry might face unexpected headwinds. Is the quick commerce model inherently flawed, or is it just facing temporary challenges in the journey to profitability? How can these companies pivot or adapt to ensure long-term sustainability without compromising on speed and convenience? Are consumers willing to pay a premium for faster deliveries in the current economic climate, or will we see a shift in priorities towards cost and value? Your thoughts? #indianstartups #cashburn #roadtoprofitability #ceosgurukul #firsttimeceos https://lnkd.in/dCp84sCd

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In FY 24, Zudio sold 90 T-shirts every minute, 20 pairs of denims every hour, along with 19 fragrances and 17 lipsticks. India's fashion industry is facing an interesting dichotomy. Revenue growth in FY24 for major fashion E-Commerce Players: Myntra -> 25% Flipkart -> ~15%( Fashion's growth is on similar lines) Amazon -> 3.4% ( Fashion business growth is on similar lines) While overall E-commerce is slowing down, fashion is an interesting case in point. Where online sellers are having a tough time, offline fashion is witnessing explosive #growth. Trent Ltd (Westside + Zudio) -> 300% 📈 profits, ~50% 📈 revenue Reliance Retail Fashion -> 32% 📈 revenue Now, both Trent and Reliance Retail are very old brands and immensely profitable as compared to their #ecommerce counterparts, which are loss making. So, why are new-age E-Commerce companies growing slower than the legacy offline fashion brands? E-commerce fashion was always a tricky #business because of its own set of challenges. The biggest problem is size mismatch issues. It's extremely difficult to gauge the right size to choose on the app as every brand uses a different size chart. Myntra tried to solve for these problems over the years. It offered easy hassle-free returns and offered even to try the dress when it arrived. Hence because of these consumer-friendly initiatives, it was growing at 60% MoM sometime in 2016. But then things changed, the return rates were as high as 30% causing huge losses, hence Myntra started to charge #money for returns. Over and above this, it also started to charge a convenience fee on purchase of Rs 1000, making it further unfriendly to purchase clothes online. The other reason why Myntra was famous was because it used to launch new categories. At one point it had an excellent collection of sportswear. It was an exclusive place to buy IPL/ Indian cricket team jerseys along with exclusive products from Nike, adidas etc. But now it reached a dead end and has ventured into almost every category. The only place left is the luxury apparel #market which is also very lucrative but luxury brands mostly look for exclusivity, hence they sell mostly at one place. TATA CLIQ probably tapped into this #opportunity and launched Tata Cliq Luxury. Both Tata and Reliance have an omnichannel presence hence easier to strike such deals with luxury brands. Hence we are in an interesting situation where offline legacy #brands are able to tap into India's fast-growing fashion market and outgrow the consumer #internet companies. Meesho is an #interesting case, which is still growing fast mostly because it caters to the Bharat segment(used metaphorically for #india 2) which still has not tried buying online and hence still witnessing growth. #kneeledge --- Follow me for more such insights around India and Indian consumers

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📰 📰 Twitter for India - Koo is struggling to engage users. 📰 📰 We at Spoke Design Labs decided to enable some engagement. So here's the report on how we could make users stick to Koo. CC: Aprameya Radhakrishna, Sai Ram Reddy

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There has been an ongoing battle on the inflated food prices listed on food aggregator apps like Swiggy and Zomato. A lot of people have justified the higher prices as the cost of convenience i.e. we are getting food right at our doorsteps. The hassles of getting ready, burning fuel and escaping the traffic of cities like Bangalore or Delhi would come at a cost. To put the pricing to perspective, food aggregator apps also charge a commission to restaurants for listing, which is almost always north of 25% and these costs are forwarded upfront to the customers. Honestly speaking, this is justified. But this "cost of convenience" has now spiralled beyond control. I don't see an upper ceiling to it. What's the limit upto which the restaurants can increase the cost of the dish? The platform fee, which started with INR 2/- has now reached INR 10/- And it's a perfect example of doing an A/B experiment, apart from filling the coffers. If people are willing to pay an inflated platform fee apart from already higher priced food items, then the high platform fee is going to stay. To wrap it up, what is the final "cost of convenience" that one is willing to pay? I guess, the time is not far away when the trend will reverse and dining-out will again be normalised. #zomato #swiggy #food #online #ordering #fee #platform #convenience

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In 2008, two UX researchers from Google visited India. This is what they discovered... Indians didn’t navigate using street names. Instead, they relied on landmarks—temples 🛕, Clocktower, or even that one famous “big banyan tree” 🌳. Instead of forcing global navigation norms, Google asked: How do Indians Navigate? The answer revealed the root causes: a lack of reliable street signage 🚫, cultural habits 🌏, and chaotic infrastructure 🛣️. From this foundation, they reimagined Google Maps Platform for India: 1️⃣ Landmark-based navigation: Instead of "Turn left at the main street," directions like “Turn left at Ganpati Temple” 🛕 felt more intuitive 2️⃣ Metro booking integration: 🚇 Simplifying fragmented transit into a unified platform 3️⃣ Road-specific nudges: ⚠️ Alerts like “Take flyover” or “Avoid narrow road” for better routing 4️⃣ Plus Codes: 📍 Providing an address where there was none, bridging urban and rural gaps 5️⃣ Multilingual support: 🌐 Navigating in up to 9 Indian languages to make maps accessible for all (Including auto drivers) This wasn’t just localization—it was first principles in action, solving deep-seated problems instead of patching symptoms. 🤕 As product managers, we often inherit constraints that seem immovable. But true innovation demands we strip down assumptions, ask the why ❓, and design solutions that feel inevitable. What’s one challenge in your product that needs a first-principles approach?💡 #productmanager #productmanagement #google

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