‘Committing Rs 1 crore’: EaseMyTrip co-founder’s innovative incentive to fight Bengaluru traffic

BENGALURU: EaseMyTrip co-founder Prashant Pitti has announced a commitment of Rs 1 crore to tackle traffic congestion in Bengaluru using AI and satellite data, urging authorities and citizens to join hands in fixing the city’s growing traffic problem.

In a detailed post on X, Pitti shared that he was stuck in traffic for over two hours while covering just 11 km late at night in Bengaluru. He said the worst part was being stranded at a choke point on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) for 100 minutes, with no traffic light or police officer in sight.

“I am committing INR 1 Cr to find Bangalore Choke-Points via Google Maps & AI. 11 km → 2.15 hours in Bangalore Traffic on Saturday late night! I was stuck at one choke-point at ORR, where I spent 100 minutes struggling to understand why there is no traffic-light or cop here”, Pitti posted on X.

However, he made it clear that he does not want to simply complain about the issue. “But I don’t want one more ‘Bengaluru Traffic Meme or Rant’. I WANT TO FIX IT”, he said.

I am committing INR 1 Cr to find Bangalore Choke-Points via Google Maps & AL.

11 km → 2.15 hours in Bangalore Traffic on Saturday late night!

I was stuck at one choke-point at ORR, where I spent 100 mins struggling to understand why there is no traffic-light or cop here!

But… pic.twitter.com/b8Nf5vnUKf

— Prashant Pitti (@ppitti) July 14, 2025

Pitti said his project will use data from Google Maps, especially the new “Road Management Insight” feature launched in April 2025. This city-level data, available in Big Query format, can be used alongside satellite imagery to identify all choke points and their timings across Bengaluru.

“Using Google Data and Satellite Imagery, we can list down all the choke-points & their exact timings in a month. For the traffic department to work on those areas specifically”, Pitti added.

He plans to fund the following with his Rs one crore commitment: Hire one to two senior machine learning/AI engineers. Budget for using Google Maps API, satellite imagery, GPUs, and field trials, and make the entire project open-source so that other Indian cities can also benefit.

Pitti said he is ready to start work as soon as the Bengaluru Traffic Police (BTP) and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) cooperate by opening raw data feeds or APIs and appoint a team committed to act on the insights.

He urged citizens to help saying., “TAG anyone you know in the Bangalore Traffic Office, BBMP or the Traffic Commissioner’s office, let this hit the right inbox. ML/AI folks: comment “IN”, if you can work along part-time to end this menace Every commuter who’s sick of bleeding time: comment or share. More noise greater the faster response,” he wrote. “Bangalore is India’s tech future; and people making it happen deserve MUCH better,” Pitti further wrote.

This comes as the Karnataka government claims to be making efforts to improve the city’s infrastructure. On June 22, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar posted on X that the Hebbal-Silk Board underground tunnel project will help commuters skip over 25 bottlenecks and save more than 45 minutes of travel time every day.

Separately, Shivakumar also claimed that the state government is implementing the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act to better manage the city. (ANI)