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Building Grab's audio safety layer from 0→1

DY Lee

Product Designer

5:27 AM

Available

Overview

Grab is Southeast Asia’s leading all-in-one super app, connecting millions of users with rides, food delivery, groceries, parcel delivery, and more. To make rides safer, I designed an audio-based safety experience across the passenger app, driver app, and internal tools giving users another layer of protection.

My role

Product Strategy

Research

End-to-end visual and interaction

Design

Timeline

AudioProtect

2024 - 2025

Live audio detection

Q2 - Q3, 2025

Driver Safety Word

Ongoing, 2026

Audio Broadcast

Q3 - Q4, 2024

Platform

iOS

Android

Press

InsideGrab

The Independent

CNA

Grab super app

Grab super app combines ride-hailing transport, food and grocery deliveries, package express services, and digital financial tools like pay, insurance, and lending into one single interface.

Download on the App Store

GET IT ON Google Play

Grab driver app

Grab Driver app helps millions of driver-partners across Southeast Asia earn and manage their work.

Download on the App Store

GET IT ON Google Play

Background

Recording is becoming an industry standard.
But it's fundamentally passive.

Discovery

Audio is not a passive medium.
What makes audio powerful?

Instead of treating audio as something useful only after a trip ends, we saw the potential to design an end-to-end audio safety layer across the full user journey.

Two-way

it can not only listen, but also respond in real time

Expressive

It captures emotion, like tone, silence, or distress

Ambient

It works in the background, without asking users to do anything

Findings

Data also suggest that our audio recordings

face a higher safety risk on the ground

This document is classified and intended solely for authorized personnel.

Access without proper clearance is strictly prohibited and may lead to serious consequences.

By continuing, you acknowledge that you understand the sensitivity of the material and agree to handle it responsibly.

…

You really don’t follow instructions, do you?

CURIOUS?

CONFIDENTIAL FILES

NDA

This document is classified and intended solely for authorized personnel.

Access without proper clearance is strictly prohibited and may lead to serious consequences.

By continuing, you acknowledge that you understand the sensitivity of the material and agree to handle it responsibly.

…

You really don’t follow instructions, do you?

CURIOUS?

CONFIDENTIAL FILES

NDA

Get in touch

Product Reframing

End-to-end audio safety journey

We reframed audio from a post-incident recording tool into an end-to-end safety experience by covering deterrence, intervention, and evidence.

Allocation

In-transit

Post-ride

Deterrance

1. Safety Broadcast

Deterrance

1. Safety Broadcast

Intervention

2. Live Audio Detection

Intervention

2. Live Audio Detection

Get help

3. Voice safety word

Get help

3. Voice safety word

Evidence

4. AudioProtect

Evidence

4. AudioProtect

Want detailed stories?

Much of My work is NDA. I can share highlights here, but more detailed case studies are available by contacting me.

Contact Me

Shipped

Deterrance

Safety broadcast

A friendly voice greets you when you get in and tells you the ride is protected. Everyone hears it, so no one tries anything.

Safety Centre

1. Draw attention gently

2. Highlight Safety Centre

3. Broadcast to deter

Safety Centre

Shipped

Intervention

Live audio detection

The system listens for unusual sounds a crash, shouting, a raised or panicked voice.

Hand holding a packet of Nutella Biscuits

Loud voice

Crash

Loud voice

Crash

Shipped

Evidence

AudioProtect

The ride's audio is locked away and stays private. Only an Incident Response agent can listen, and only if something goes wrong and it's reported. Recording stays under your control, you can turn it on or off anytime.

The ride’s audio is locked away and stays private. Only an Incident Response agent can listen, and only if something goes wrong and it’s reported. Recording stays under your control, you can turn it on or off anytime.

AudioProtect is on

Safety Centre

Shipped

Evidence

Recording access by agents

IRT agents can access and listen to a ride’s audio recording only when a safety incident has been reported. The recording will be securely uploaded to a Grab's platform to support the incident investigation.

Impact

Giving peace of mind to millions

Grab’s safety audio safety features are designed to make every journey feel safer giving millions of passengers and driver-partners greater peace of mind on the road.

Safety Impact

32%

Fewer in-person safety incidents on rides with AudioProtect enabled.*

Sustained adoption

75%+

of users keep audio safety features on across Southeast Asia.

Safety audio safety features are highlighted at GrabX 25, Grab's product showcase event where the company announces its newest technology features, app updates, and AI-powered tools.

Public case

Driver protected

A passenger reported a driver for sexual misconduct. The audio recording showed no evidence for the claim, and the driver was reinstated.

Sources: Grab,

PCIJ

🇵🇭

Philippines · Jan 2025

Public case

Passenger protected

A driver reported that a passenger threatened him and refused to pay a toll. The audio recording told a different story, and the passenger was cleared.

Sources: Grab,

PCIJ

🇻🇳

Vietnam · Apr 2025

Want detailed stories?

Much of My work is NDA. I can share highlights here, but more detailed case studies are available by contacting me.

Contact Me

Want detailed stories?

Much of My work is NDA. I can share highlights here, but more detailed case studies are available by contacting me.

Contact Me

Man wearing yellow sweater and white VR headset indoors

Smartphone showing Instagram, coffee cup, notebook and pen

Ice cream sundae bowl with perfume bottle and melting cream

Woman applying facial oil drop to cheek from glass bottle

Shipped

Building Grab's audio safety layer from 0→1

Overview

Overview

Grab super app

Grab super app combines ride-hailing transport, food and grocery deliveries, package express services, and digital financial tools like pay, insurance, and lending into one single interface.

Grab driver app

Grab Driver app helps millions of driver-partners across Southeast Asia earn and manage their work.

Audio is not a passive medium.What makes audio powerful?

Audio is not a passive medium.What makes audio powerful?

Instead of treating audio as something useful only after a trip ends, we saw the potential to design an end-to-end audio safety layer across the full user journey.

Two-way

Expressive

Ambient

Data also suggest that our audio recordings

End-to-end audio safety journey

End-to-end audio safety journey

We reframed audio from a post-incident recording tool into an end-to-end safety experience by covering deterrence, intervention, and evidence.

We reframed audio from a post-incident recording tool into an end-to-end safety experience by covering deterrence, intervention, and evidence.

Allocation

In-transit

Post-ride

1. Safety Broadcast

1. Safety Broadcast

2. Live Audio Detection

2. Live Audio Detection

3. Voice safety word

3. Voice safety word

4. AudioProtect

4. AudioProtect

Want detailed stories?

AudioProtect

AudioProtect

The ride's audio is locked away and stays private. Only an Incident Response agent can listen, and only if something goes wrong and it's reported. Recording stays under your control, you can turn it on or off anytime.

The ride’s audio is locked away and stays private. Only an Incident Response agent can listen, and only if something goes wrong and it’s reported. Recording stays under your control, you can turn it on or off anytime.

Recording access by agents

Recording access by agents

IRT agents can access and listen to a ride’s audio recording only when a safety incident has been reported. The recording will be securely uploaded to a Grab's platform to support the incident investigation.

Giving peace of mind to millions

Giving peace of mind to millions

Grab’s safety audio safety features are designed to make every journey feel safer giving millions of passengers and driver-partners greater peace of mind on the road.

Safety Impact

32%

Sustained adoption

75%+

Safety audio safety features are highlighted at GrabX 25, Grab's product showcase event where the company announces its newest technology features, app updates, and AI-powered tools.

Driver protected

🇵🇭

Passenger protected

🇻🇳

Want detailed stories?

Want detailed stories?