Chinese Bike Firm Ofo Hires Former Uber Product Chief Michelle Chen As CPO

Beijing-based bike sharing company ofo has hired Michelle Chen (pictured), former head of product at Uber China, as chief project officer to handle the company’s product design and data research. She will report directly to the company’s founder and CEO, Dai Wei. Chen joined Uber Technologies Inc. in 2015, and was responsible for the U.S.… Continue reading Chinese Bike Firm Ofo Hires Former Uber Product Chief Michelle Chen As CPO

Didi Ponders SoftBank-Led $6B Investment As China’s Ride Share Giant Suffers Volume Declines

China’s Uber equivalent Didi Chuxing is considering whether to take a US$6 billion investment backed by SoftBank Group Corp. – which could be the largest private fundraising for an Internet company anywhere, anytime – as the Chinese ride sharing giant suffers volume declines after regulations were rolled out across the country. SoftBank might be investing… Continue reading Didi Ponders SoftBank-Led $6B Investment As China’s Ride Share Giant Suffers Volume Declines

China’s Didi Launches AI Lab In Silicon Valley, Aims To Lead On Intelligent Driving Tech

The global talent war for top artificial intelligence (AI) talent just intensified, as Chinese ride share giant Didi Chuxing officially launched an AI lab in California to attract top engineering talents to advance transformation in the global transportation industry. The newly established Didi Labs, located in Mountain View, will primarily focus on AI-based security and… Continue reading China’s Didi Launches AI Lab In Silicon Valley, Aims To Lead On Intelligent Driving Tech

China’s Didi Sued For Talent Poaching By Alibaba-Owned AutoNavi

Chinese mapping company AutoNavi Holdings Ltd., owned by Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd., has sued Didi Chuxing for unfair competition, alleging the ride-sharing company poached eight veteran engineers from its team and asking for RMB75 million (US$10.9 million) in damages, according to court documents. AutoNavi said that one senior manager and six engineers with knowledge of… Continue reading China’s Didi Sued For Talent Poaching By Alibaba-Owned AutoNavi

BMW plans European Uber

The car company BMW is looking for new business areas. With DriveNow, the Bavarians are already investing in the carsharing business, now they want to start a carpool service according to SPIEGEL-ONLINE information. Administration building of BMW in Munich Monday, 14.03.2016 09:09 clock BMW wants to build in Europe a competitor to the driving service… Continue reading BMW plans European Uber

Everything on a map

Audi, BMW and Daimler paid around three billion euros for the map service Here. Why? Digital maps are the key to the car of the future. HERE Berlin Wednesday, 13.04.2016 20:22 clock The office in the Invalidenstraße in Berlin-Mitte is inconspicuous: Simple furniture, bright walls. Only a white cockpit in the corner indicates that this… Continue reading Everything on a map

Didi-Backed Bike Sharing Start-Up Ofo Expands To 22 Cities In China

Beijing-based bike sharing firm ofo, which raised US$130 million venture funding last month following a capital injection from Didi Chuxing, has expanded its operations to 22 cities in China and increased total bike count to 160,000. Mobike, backed by Hillhouse Capital, Warburg Pincus and others, entered its fifth city yesterday. Both companies are racing to… Continue reading Didi-Backed Bike Sharing Start-Up Ofo Expands To 22 Cities In China

Didi Chuxing Invests In Chinese Bike Sharing Start-Up Ofo

Didi Chuxing has invested tens of millions of U.S. dollars in ofo, an urban bicycle sharing platform, to expand the Chinese ride share giant’s operations into the so-called last mile mobility space. As part the investment, DiDi plans to include ofo bike sharing offerings on its own mobile apps. The two companies did not disclose… Continue reading Didi Chuxing Invests In Chinese Bike Sharing Start-Up Ofo

In Shanghai, A Bike-Sharing Start-Up Discovers Users Don’t Want To Share

Mobike, a Shanghai bike sharing start-up founded by a former Uber manager in the Chinese city, is discovering that some Chinese users like to ride the bike but don’t want to share with others. The company’s mobile app allows users to find the closest bikes, then by scanning a QR code on the bike to… Continue reading In Shanghai, A Bike-Sharing Start-Up Discovers Users Don’t Want To Share

Panda Capital Leads $10M Series B Round In Mobile

Panda Capital has led a US$10 million series B round in Mobike, a Shanghai-based mobile app that allows users to rent bikes for short distance commute, according to Chinese media reports. Joy Capital also participated in the round. Launched in December 2015, Mobike operates its own bike fleet equipped with self developed smart lock and… Continue reading Panda Capital Leads $10M Series B Round In Mobile