Alibaba’s AutoNavi becomes the first Chinese maps service to navigate a path to 100 million daily users

AutoNavi, Alibaba Group Holding’s maps app, said this week it crossed the 100 million daily users threshold on the first day of China’s Golden Week holiday, becoming the first maps service to reach such a milestone in China.

The company hit the 100 million user mark at close to 8pm on October 1, China’s National Day, the first day of a week-long holiday on the mainland when millions of people are travelling to meet family and friends.

AutoNavi, which started out as a simple maps and navigation service, was acquired by Alibaba in 2014 for US$1.5 billion and has since turned into something of a super app, a growing trend in China where an array of services can be accessed at the tap of a finger. AutoNavi allows users to book taxi or car rides within the app from various ride-hailing companies, find available bicycles nearby to rent and even offers content on nearby tourist attractions.

The 100 million daily active users (DAU) milestone means that AutoNavi has likely surpassed Baidu Maps, its biggest rival in China’s mapping and navigation industry. Data from Quest Mobile last year showed that Baidu Maps had 300 million monthly active users, although the company has not publicly announced its latest DAU numbers.

Baidu did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment sent during the mainland holiday period on its user statistics for Baidu Maps.