Truecaller, once a beacon of caller identification for over 500 million users, is now navigating turbulent waters. With growth in its largest market slowing and competition intensifying, the app must pivot to new monetization strategies like AI Assistant and Community Suggestions. However, telecom-led solutions such as CNAP are encroaching on its core business.

The shift has not gone unnoticed by investors, with Truecaller’s share price plummeting since its IPO in 2021. The immediate risk lies in ads – the company lost a significant portion of its ad traffic from Google last year, prompting it to diversify its revenue streams and build an in-house ad exchange.

Despite these challenges, Truecaller is seeing growth in in-app purchases and expanding its presence on iOS, indicating potential for higher-value markets. Yet, Apple’s enhanced call-screening capabilities could curtail this progress, suggesting that the future of caller identification may be more fragmented than ever.