Building India's MapTech: Insights from Our CEO Narayana Bhatta

At Latlong, we are building a mapping stack for the world, combining AI, open data, and geospatial intelligence to solve deeply local problems. Recently, our CEO Narayana Bhatta shared some of these insights on the AI4India podcast, speaking about our work, technology, and the future of geospatial innovation in India.

Made in India. Made for The World.

We have built a full-stack maps platform for developers, enterprises, and public sector use, including an API suite for geocoding, routing, and auto-complete; Anuga — a field operations product used by market research, logistics, and research clients; and Aaloka — an AI-led insights platform offering geospatial intelligence.

Our focus is on local-first innovation. We've designed our geocoding engine to handle India's messy, inconsistent address data. By converting user inputs to scripts like Devanagari and applying advanced pattern matching, we've reached geocoding accuracy levels 3–4 times better than Google Maps, as verified by IIT Kanpur.

From Dealer Lookups to Election Strategy

Our technology is in use across a wide range of sectors:

• TVS Motors integrates our APIs for dealer lookups via call centres and digital platforms.
• A leading political consultancy uses Anuga for complex field surveys, even in areas with patchy GPS or internet.
• Aaloka empowers decision-makers with LLM-powered insights on demographics, local infrastructure, and behavioural patterns — all without requiring technical expertise.

Embracing DigiPin for a Smarter Addressing System

India's recent push for a standardized DigiPin system aligns perfectly with our mission. We've already rolled out DigiPin APIs that allow businesses to migrate from conventional addresses to this new format, making operations cleaner, faster, and more scalable.

The Cost of Mapping and Why It Matters

When map APIs cost ₹2 or more per transaction, but total revenue is ₹2–₹3 per transaction in mobility, companies can't offer any mobility solution. Latlong offers a sovereign alternative with higher accuracy at lower cost, tailored to country needs.

AI Across the Stack

We leverage AI at multiple layers: data processing to clean large public datasets, LLMs like those from AI4Bharat for geocoding and localization, and Aaloka for AI-driven insights where users can ask "Where are the highest concentrations of senior citizens in this district?" and get answers in seconds.

Today, we serve clients in over 50 countries, but our roots and our purpose remain firmly in India.