Apple was granted a seat on the board of Didi Chuxing following its staggering $1 billion investment in the ride-hailing company, reports The Information. Citing a regulatory filing, the outlet says the appointment occurred in late June—a few weeks after the deal was finalized. Adrian Perica, Apple’s mergers and acquisitions chief, represents Apple on the board. Perica also played a major roll in the company’s $3 billion Beats acquisition back in 2014.
The board appointment occurred in late June, according to a regulatory filing. It reinforces the gravity of Apple’s investment, which influenced Uber’s decision to sell its China operations to Didi at the end of July. Didi had a large lead in market share but Uber hoped Didi wouldn’t be able to keep raising capital. The Apple investment, while not the deciding factor, was personally disappointing to Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, say people who know him.
Apple announced in May that it was investing $1 billion in Didi Chuxing, which is widely known as the “Uber of China.” The iPhone-maker plans to use the strategic partnership to deepen its ties and strengthen its presence in the country, which features the world’s second largest economy. It’s also possible that Apple could take advantage of Didi’s large fleet of vehicles to gather data and test technology for its rumored self-driving car initiative Project Titan.
Source: The Information