Uber and Celestial: service starts in 100 Chinese cities

Photo: Kommersant

Uber Taxi Service Guide thinks globally. Uber CEO Travis Kalanik said that in the coming year, the company plans to start work in another 100 Chinese cities, Kommersant writes . Now Uber works in 20 cities of China.

Kalanik made his statement in Beijing, at an event that was organized by one of Uber's partners, Baidu. Earlier, the company published information that local investors provided the service of $ 1.2 billion to the Chinese unit. Initially, Uber planned to start work in 50 cities, but in connection with receiving investments, plans changed upwards.

At the same time, in China, Uber is facing serious competition - in particular, with the service Didi Kuaidi, which recently received as much as $ 3 billion from investors. Nevertheless, the general director of Uber claims a huge potential for growth of his company in China. “At the beginning of 2015, we had 1% of the Chinese taxi market. Now our market share is 30–35%, ”said the entrepreneur.
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As mentioned above, the main business partner of Uber in China is Baidu. The cooperation of both companies is not by chance. “So we can get acquainted and build ties with the city authorities, and the city authorities, in turn, can get acquainted with our work and understand what innovations and progress we bring to the life of their cities,” said the head of Uber.