Digital Entrant Scaling & Dynamics:How Grab Transformed & Transcended the SE Asian Mobility Industry

Our inductive case study of the Southeast Asian mobility industry reveals that an innovative digital platform entrant had the advantage of being able to scale and transform itself, its focal industry and other industries. Rather than trying to adapt to the existing industry architecture of traditional value creation and capture, the entrant repositioned its business model with little regard for the focal industry or its incumbents, who ultimately clamored to support it even as it expanded beyond the focal mobility industry into other industries. Instead, the successful digital platform entrant focused on competing with other digital entrant rivals to capture a larger user base by transcending focal industry boundaries to enter and transform multiple industries through a digital superapp business model. Our study contributes a process model on entrant–incumbent dynamics to research on disruptive innovation, digital platform ecosystems, and startup scaling.