DiDi and SoftBank tie-up to launch ride-hailing services in Japan

Didi Chuxing announced the official launch DiDi Mobility Japan Corp. ("DiDi Japan"), a joint-venture with SoftBank, to offer on-demand taxi-hailing services and smart transportation solutions for citizens and tourists in the world's third largest economy.

"DiDi believes AI-based innovation may contribute to new growth of taxi industry and the public transportation sectors. We look forward to developing extensive collaboration with all industry players to assist in smart city initiatives in Japan and Asia," says Jean Liu, President of Didi Chuxing.

"Through this joint venture, I am delighted to deliver the DiDi's most advanced transportation platform service with AI technology to the Japanese market. Combining DiDi's outstanding innovation with SoftBank's extensive business base including advanced network infrastructure, I believe the joint venture can provide new value to both the consumers and taxi companies in Japan," says Ken Miyauchi, President & CEO of SoftBank Corp.

With advanced mobile internet infrastructure and a global reputation for high-quality taxi service, Japan holds great potential as a market for online taxi-hailing. There is earnest demand for more convenient urban and regional transportation services, especially in light of the growing population of senior citizens.

Stephen Zhu, Vice President of Didi Chuxing and CEO of DiDi Japan, said that the new platform aims to help taxi companies to improve their efficiency and utilisation, enhance user satisfaction and build more broad-based demand for taxi services.

Cities in Japan are bracing for a new phase of economic expansion and tourism growth. According to Japan National Tourism Organisation, in-bound travelers grew by 28% annually, and the number of Greater China visitors by 34% per year between 2012 and 2017. DiDi Japan aims to support the Japanese taxi industry to capture these new opportunities in anticipation of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

DiDi aims to roll out its ride-matching app for riders, drivers and taxi operators in Osaka, Kyoto, Fukuoka, Tokyo and other major cities starting from autumn this year. At the same time, new customised roaming features will be added to the DiDi Greater China app, including real-time in-app Chinese-Japanese instant message translation and local Chinese language customer support. Current DiDi users in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan will be able to use their DiDi Greater China app to hail taxis in their native language in Japan.

In an important step for DiDi's global operations, with the launch of the DiDi Japan apps, users of the DiDi Global app will be able to enjoy roaming service among DiDi's overseas markets, including Japan, Australia and Mexico.