Tencent, Warburg Lead $215M Series D Round In China’s Mobike

Chinese Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Warburg Pincus have led a US$215 million series D funding round in Mobike, a Chinese smart bike-sharing company. New strategic investors including China’s largest travel company Ctrip, TPG, and Chinese hotel operator Huazhu Hotels Group, as well as existing investors Sequoia Capital China and Hillhouse Capital also participated.… Continue reading Tencent, Warburg Lead $215M Series D Round In China’s Mobike

BMW and Daimler let Apple flash off with iCar

Apple is suffering a setback in its expansion into the car market. According to “Handelsblatt” both BMW and Daimler reject a partnership with the IT giant. BMW headquarters in Munich Thursday, 21.04.2016 10:56 The US company Apple apparently failed with his attempt, along with BMW or Daimler to build a car. Appropriate negotiations are over,… Continue reading BMW and Daimler let Apple flash off with iCar

‘Experience Mando, Design the Future’ at the 2017 Seoul Motor Show

Korea’s biggest automobile show, the Seoul Motor Show was held at KINTEX in Ilsan, Gyeonggi-do for 10 days after opening on March 31 (Fri). There were 27 domestic and foreign automobile companies in this motor show, and 42 new cars were exhibited, including two that were being shown to the public for the first time… Continue reading ‘Experience Mando, Design the Future’ at the 2017 Seoul Motor Show

Ofo Appoints Ex-Didi Senior Vice President Fu Qiang As Deputy CEO

Chinese bike sharing firm ofo has appointed Fu Qiang (pictured), former senior vice president at Chinese ride sharing company and ofo’s largest shareholder Didi Chuxing, as its deputy chief executive officer. At the same time, head of Didi’s open platform Nan Shan and director of finance Leslie Liu have joined ofo’s marketing and finance department,… Continue reading Ofo Appoints Ex-Didi Senior Vice President Fu Qiang As Deputy CEO

Mobility is a necessity – Everyone will always travel

Lex Hoefsloot — Co-Founder

Do you remember the game-changer of mobility in the 20th century? Yes, it was Henry Ford with his car: the model T.

From this point in time urban planning was centred around the car. The streets and cities faced major transformations. Many new features came along, like parking lots, motorways, gas stations, and traffic lights. Each of these developments helped us to move around easier and more comfortable. It became easier to visit our friends and family in other towns. The time to travel reduced from days to hours, the car unlocked many opportunities. Nowadays, the car is our most expensive possession, after our house. It is a vehicle that we trust our safety to. We use the car to go on holidays and to go to-and-from work.

Mobility changed the distance travelled, not the time travelled.
Mobility is a condition for prosperity and well-being, and research points out that mobility is not only a means but also a goal in itself. Historically, people ..

Lightyear wins €100 000 in Postcode Lottery Green Challenge

Martijn Lammers — Co-Founder

We have joined the finalists on stage at the Postcode Lottery Green Challenge. The four other finalists came from all over the world to pitch their companies in front of an international jury (http://www.greenchallenge.info/info/juries). Lightyear will use the 100,000 euro cash prize to accelerate the development of their first car, the Lightyear One. Several preliminary rounds preceded the finals. Out of a total of over 500 companies the five finalists remained.

“All the problems we have had with zero emissions vehicles, those belong to the past now.” – Lex Hoefsloot, CEO of Lightyear during his pitch at the Green Challenge finals.

On June 29, 2017 the Dutch startup Lightyear officially announced their plans to bring a commercial solar car to the market in 2019. The first vehicle, the Lightyear One, is an electric four-wheel drive car that can handle rough terrain and has a battery range of 800 kilometers, charged by the sun. Production of th..

When cars and solar energy meet

Lex Hoefsloot — Co-Founder

Energy is the ability to do work. It is the reason why we have progressed into a highly prosperous society within 200 years. Energy veteran Gregg Maryniak showed me this graph that puts the whole story into perspective. Looking at this timescale, it suddenly becomes clear that fossil fuels are just a blip in history. In a very short time, fossil fuels gave us prosperity and the ability to accelerate all aspects of human development. Sadly, we all know that these energy sources came with a dark-side. We will inevitably switch to a new energy source.

Fossil fuels are just a blip in history. source

Despite the fact that this ‘blip’ is associated with massive amounts of energy, scientists are in fact quite certain that we can produce the same amount of energy using solar and wind power. Isn’t it fascinating how we are heading towards a future in which we can produce many times more energy using solar and wind power than mother nature has been ca..

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

Daimler sells more cars than ever before

Mercedes sales in China are booming: Sales of the Daimler brand increased by 17.2 percent compared with the same month last year. Despite record levels, shareholders worry about the future of the car maker. Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler AG Friday, 06.04.2018 12:28 clock The carmaker Daimler benefit from good sales in China, In March,… Continue reading Daimler sells more cars than ever before

Fiat Chrysler participates in Alliance for Robot Cars

Fiat Chrysler is the first manufacturer to join the BMW Alliance for self-driving cars. This is growing the alliance against powerful IT rivals from the Silicon Valley. Fiat Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne Wednesday, 16.08.2017 13:26 clock Fiat Chrysler wants to work with you in the future BMW and the US chip specialist Intel Assistance Systems… Continue reading Fiat Chrysler participates in Alliance for Robot Cars