T map Surpasses 20 Million Users... "2025 IPO to Proceed Without Issues" (Comprehensive)

Evolution into Integrated Mobility Service Including Public Transportation
"Sales Up 1.5 Times This Year... Profit Turnaround as Early as Next Year"

The navigation application (app) T map surpassed 20 million subscribers 22 years after its launch. It plans to expand into a personalized integrated mobility service within the year, accelerate profitability improvements based on its solid user base, and smoothly proceed with its initial public offering (IPO) in 2025.

T map Mobility announced this on the 17th at the 'T map 20 Million Subscribers Milestone Briefing' held at Samhwa Tower in Euljiro, Seoul.

Lee Jaehwan, CSO of T map Mobility (left), and Choi Injun, Map Contents Team Leader of T map Mobility, are answering reporters' questions at a meeting on the 17th.
[Photo by Oh Suyeon]

Lee Jaehwan, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of T map Mobility, said, "20 million subscribers represent 60% of the driving-capable population and 78% of the domestically registered vehicles," adding, "We aim to develop into a mobility platform that offers more benefits and services to users by leveraging the experience accumulated over 22 years."

T map originated from 'Nate Drive,' launched in 2002 during the feature phone era. Initially, it was only available to SK Telecom subscribers, but since 2016, it has been offered free of charge to the entire nation, establishing itself as the leading navigation service in Korea. Since its establishment as T map Mobility Co., Ltd. in December 2020, it has been pursuing digitalization in various areas such as designated driver services, airport buses, parking, electric vehicles, and freight, driving mobility innovation.

Within this year, the T map app will integrate not only navigation but also public transportation, continuously linking various mobility services. The CSO said, "Many domestic operators are striving to become integrated mobility or super apps, but services are still provided in a segmented manner," adding, "Our goal is a personalized integrated mobility service that does not simply list service apps but offers the optimal means reflecting individual preferences at the moment a destination is selected." He also stated, "Based on this, we will expand from a national navigation service to a national mobility platform," and "We will proactively pioneer future mobility markets such as autonomous driving and urban air mobility (UAM) to provide better services."

By expanding services, T map Mobility aims to strengthen profitability and proceed with the IPO as planned. The company recorded sales of 204.6 billion KRW last year, a 2.7-fold increase compared to the previous year. The net loss was 160.8 billion KRW, an increase of 155.5 billion KRW, influenced by equity method valuation losses related to UT, a joint venture with Uber. The CSO said, "We will proceed with the IPO in 2025 without any setbacks," adding, "Sales are expected to grow 1.5 times this year as well. Our goal is to improve profitability before the IPO, and we may turn profitable on an EBITA basis as early as 2024."

Efforts are also being made in ESG (environmental, social, and governance) management. Based on the advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) map currently being developed in-house, an 'Eco Route' for electric vehicles that guides drivers along low-carbon paths will be commercialized within the year. By combining the proprietary high-definition map and user data, it guides drivers along routes that emit the least carbon. Driving on the Eco Route results in about a 15% fuel savings compared to the previously recommended routes. The service will be expanded to internal combustion engine vehicles in the future.

T map Mobility announced that over the past five years, it has created social value worth 657.2 billion KRW (calculated as the number of safe driving policy subscribers × accident reduction rate × traffic accident damage handling costs) and reduced greenhouse gas (CO2) emissions by 8,885,726 tons over eight years (based on driving habits + optimal route greenhouse gas emissions). Since a 30-year-old pine forest of 1 hectare absorbs about 10.8 tons of carbon dioxide annually, this is equivalent to creating a pine forest of 822,752 hectares (8,227.52 km²), which is 1,828 times larger than Yeouido.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.