Apple CEO Tim Cook “secretly” struck a deal with China in which he agreed to invest around $275 billion of Apple’s money to boost the country’s economy and “technological prowess,” according to a new report.
The five-year agreement was allegedly made during a series of visits Cook made to China in 2016 amid growing regulatory hostilities toward Cupertino. Since then, Apple has become China’s biggest smartphone brand.
The app for Didi Chuxing, the popular Chinese ride-hailing service, has been removed from the App Store in China, citing privacy concerns.
This is no usual case of Apple booting an app from the App Store for failing to measure up to its standards, though. In fact, Apple CEO Tim Cook sits on Didi’s board of directors, and Apple previously invested $1 billion in the Chinese Uber rival. Instead, the ban was ordered by China’s Cyberspace Administration of China regulators — citing “serious violations [regarding] collection and usage of personal information.”
Apple CEO Tim Cook had nothing but high praise for Didi Chuxing CEO Jean Liu in an exert he wrote about her for Time magazine.
Liu was named one of Time’s 100 most influential people of 2017. Cook, who sits on Didi’s board, was asked to write about Liu and said that her taxi-hailing startup is changing how people in China connect and commute with its convenience and flexibility.
Apple CEO Tim Cook is currently on another tour of China this week and is staying busy by visiting some of the hottest startups in the country.
This morning Cook paid a visit to bike-sharing startup Ofo which is already valued at $1 billion and counts Uber-rival/Apple-ally Didi Chuxing as one of its investors.
Apple has scored a seat on the board of Didi Chuxing, the Chinese Uber rival that Apple invested $1 billion in earlier this year.
Although Didi Chuxing denied it at the time, regulatory filings show that Apple took the board position in late June, one month after it made its generous investment — designed to aid Apple’s continued push into China and interest in shaking up the automotive industry.
The second largest ride-hailing service in the U.S., Lyft, has reportedly been trying to find relief from its fierce competition by approaching Apple and other top tech companies regarding a possible acquisition.
Apple’s decision to invest $1 billion in “Chinese Uber” Didi Chuxing earlier this year is proving a smart move after the company bought out the real Uber in China — bringing an end to what was proving to be a costly and bitter battle over the Chinese lift-sharing market.
Tim Cook is in China again, and he marked the occasion by paying a visit to an Apple Store in Beijing on Monday — in the company of Liu Qing, a.k.a. the president of Didi Chuxing, the Chinese Uber rival Apple just invested a staggering $1 billion in.
Apple has invested $1 billion in Chinese Uber rival Didi Chuxing in a move that continues Apple’s push into China and confirms the company’s interest in shaking up the automotive industry.
According to Tim Cook, the deal “reflects our excitement about their growing business … and also our continued confidence in the long term in China’s economy.” Perhaps more importantly, it could give Apple strategic insights and competitive advantages when it comes to Apple Pay and a possible Apple Car.
