DiDi

Brand Overview

DiDi Global Inc. is China’s leading one-stop mobility and local life services technology company, headquartered in Beijing. Guided by the mission “Make Mobility Better,” DiDi leverages AI technology to provide a diverse range of services—including ride-hailing, taxis, carpooling, designated driving, shared bikes, shared e-bikes, car rentals, food delivery, and financial services—to over 550 million users globally. Founded in 2012 by Cheng Wei, Zhang Bo, and others, the company emerged as the absolute leader in China’s mobility market after defeating competitors like Kuaidi and Uber China through aggressive subsidy wars under the “DiDi Chuxing” brand. DiDi listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on June 30, 2021, voluntarily delisted in 2022, and moved to trade on the OTC Pink Market. Currently, the company focuses on its core mobility business in China while accelerating international expansion and the implementation of autonomous driving technology.

As a mobility platform rather than an automaker, DiDi’s approach to the automotive sector is unique. It neither manufactures vehicles independently nor acts merely as a technology service provider. Instead, DiDi has built a comprehensive mobility infrastructure system centered on its massive capacity network and mobility data. This ecosystem encompasses vehicle customization, smart driving solutions, energy replenishment networks, and vehicle asset operations. Globally, more than 15 million active drivers have earned income through the DiDi platform.

In terms of capital markets, DiDi transferred from the Pink Market back to the NASDAQ main board for relisting in May 2025, further strengthening its financial foundation. As of 2025, the company has cumulatively raised over $20 billion, with backing from top global investment institutions such as SoftBank, Tencent, Alibaba, and Hillhouse Capital.

Development History

DiDi was established in July 2012 in Zhongguancun, Beijing, by founders Cheng Wei, Zhang Bo, and Wang Gang. In its early days, the company rapidly acquired users through an O2O model driven by “taxi subsidies.” In 2014, DiDi engaged in a fierce subsidy war with Kuaidi Dache, which culminated in their merger in February 2015, establishing DiDi’s dominance in the domestic mobility market. By August 2016, DiDi acquired Uber’s China operations, securing over 90% of the Chinese ride-hailing market share. As order volumes continued to surge, DiDi began expanding overseas in 2016, strategically investing in or acquiring major global players such as Lyft (USA), Ola (India), Taxify (Europe), and Careem (Middle East). The acquisition of the Brazilian local mobility platform 99 in 2018 marked the official start of its global layout.

With the rapid growth of its capacity network, DiDi transformed from a simple “brokerage business” into a comprehensive “infrastructure” provider. In 2018, the company established the Automotive Asset Management Center, launched “XiaoJu CheFu,” and began expanding into energy services, including charging and battery swapping. A significant milestone occurred in November 2020, when DiDi and BYD jointly released the D1, the first custom-designed ride-hailing vehicle, marking DiDi’s formal entry into co-defining products with automakers.

In April 2021, DiDi internally launched an automobile project codenamed “Da Vinci,” aiming to independently develop pure electric models for the mass market. The project once employed a team of approximately 1,700 people. However, due to the challenges associated with the heavy-asset model and the long-term investment required for car manufacturing, the project was halted in 2024. Related assets were transferred to XPeng Auto, which subsequently took over the planning of models such as the MONA series. DiDi benefited from this divestment through stock agreements. Meanwhile, in May 2023, DiDi Autonomous Driving and GAC Aion officially launched the “AIDI Program,” establishing a joint venture named “Anditech” to co-develop pre-installed, mass-produced L4 Robotaxi models. This collaboration made DiDi the first company in China where an automaker and an autonomous driving firm jointly promoted the mass production of Robotaxis.

By around 2024, DiDi’s financial performance had normalized. Its China mobility business achieved double-digit order growth for 11 consecutive quarters. In 2025, the core platform recorded an order volume of 18.24 billion, with a total transaction value exceeding 450 billion yuan. The international business also saw robust growth, with order volume increasing by 24.7% year-on-year to reach 4.505 billion. In early 2026, the new generation Robotaxi model R2, jointly created with GAC Aion, was officially delivered, marking a key milestone in DiDi’s autonomous driving commercialization efforts.

Brand Matrix / Product Lines

DiDi does not maintain a traditional vehicle product line. Instead, it has built a mobility ecosystem centered on the full lifecycle of vehicles by collaborating on deep customization with automakers, integrating autonomous driving technology, and leveraging vehicle asset operation capabilities. Its automotive-related business systems can be divided into five core sectors:

Customized Ride-Hailing Vehicles: This represents the earliest form of vehicle cooperation in DiDi’s history. In November 2020, DiDi and BYD jointly customized the D1, the world’s first pure electric vehicle deeply tailored for shared mobility. Manufactured by BYD, the D1 features DiDi’s self-developed “XiaoJu Smart” in-vehicle system and dedicated equipment such as an interactive screen. Designed for high-frequency ride-hailing scenarios, it includes right-side rear sliding doors, a low floor, and a long wheelbase, with cumulative procurement and deployment exceeding 50,000 units. Following the termination of its internal “Da Vinci” self-developed car project, DiDi retained significant expertise in vehicle definition and design. In 2024, XPeng Auto acquired these design capabilities and part of the vehicle planning, including the definition of the first MONA model.

Autonomous Driving Fleet (Robotaxi): This is a focal point of DiDi’s current vehicle business. Through its joint venture “Anditech” with GAC Aion, DiDi has launched the R2, a pre-installed, mass-produced L4 autonomous vehicle. The R2 is equipped with 33 high-precision sensors and a computing unit delivering over 2,000 TOPS of computing power. Built on the GEP 3.0 pure electric platform and DiDi’s self-developed L4 full-stack driving system, it enables fully unmanned operations. Starting in the fourth quarter of 2025, DiDi introduced 24/7 fully unmanned driving services in select areas of Guangzhou, using a mixed dispatch mode that combines RobotaxisDiDi does not maintain a traditional vehicle product line. Instead, it has built a mobility ecosystem centered on the full lifecycle of vehicles by collaborating on deep customization with automakers, integrating autonomous driving technology, and leveraging vehicle asset operation capabilities. Its automotive-related business systems can be divided into five core sectors:

Customized Ride-Hailing Vehicles: This represents the earliest form of vehicle cooperation in DiDi’s history. In November 2020, DiDi and BYD jointly customized the D1, the world’s first pure electric vehicle deeply tailored for shared mobility. Manufactured by BYD, the D1 features DiDi’s self-developed “XiaoJu Smart” in-vehicle system and dedicated equipment such as an interactive screen. Designed for high-frequency ride-hailing scenarios, it includes right-side rear sliding doors, a low floor, and a long wheelbase, with cumulative procurement and deployment exceeding 50,000 units. Following the termination of its internal “Da Vinci” self-developed car project, DiDi retained significant expertise in vehicle definition and design. In 2024, XPeng Auto acquired these design capabilities and part of the vehicle planning, including the definition of the first MONA model.

Autonomous Driving Fleet (Robotaxi): This is a focal point of DiDi’s current vehicle business. Through its joint venture “Anditech” with GAC Aion, DiDi has launched the R2, a pre-installed, mass-produced L4 autonomous vehicle. The R2 is equipped with 33 high-precision sensors and a computing unit delivering over 2,000 TOPS of computing power. Built on the GEP 3.0 pure electric platform and DiDi’s self-developed L4 full-stack driving system, it enables fully unmanned operations. Starting in the fourth quarter of 2025, DiDi introduced 24/7 fully unmanned driving services in select areas of Guangzhou, using a mixed dispatch mode that combines Robotaxis with ordinary ride-hailing vehicles. In 2026, the R2 is expected to undergo batch demonstration applications in cities such as Guangzhou and Beijing.

XiaoJu Energy (Charging and Energy Replenishment): As the core energy system customized for new energy fleets, XiaoJu Energy leverages DiDi’s big data advantages to provide charging and battery-swapping services. It serves nearly one million pure electric vehicles on the DiDi platform, as well as logistics companies and private car owners, through strategic network layout, smart operator management, and optimized owner charging. The XiaoJu Charging platform covers over 20,000 fast-charging piles in nearly 40 cities nationwide, handling a daily charging volume of nearly 3 million kWh, and has been recognized as one of the “Top 10 Charging Operators Brands in China” three times. Additionally, XiaoJu Refueling covers over 6,000 gas stations in nearly 300 cities. In 2025, DiDi and CATL established a joint venture, “CATL DiDi,” to focus on battery-swapping services for ride-hailing, entering the swapping market through high-frequency scenarios.

QingJu and E-bikes: Incubated independently by DiDi, QingJu Bikes are a crucial component of the two-wheeler ecosystem, providing an important “last-mile” connection solution for DiDi Mobility. Deployed in over 200 cities nationwide, QingJu has also integrated competing peers such as XiaoLan Bikes.

XiaoJu Car Service (Post-Vehicle Market and Asset Operation): This sector provides comprehensive vehicle asset management services, including maintenance, insurance, and repair. By integrating vehicle data and operational experience from over 4 million new energy vehicles on the DiDi platform, XiaoJu Car Service supports entities such as Hainan ChengCheng Auto Service and Hainan QingJu Auto Repair Service, ensuring efficient lifecycle management for fleet vehicles.

Market Performance

As of the end of 2025, DiDi’s total transaction value (GTV) reached 450.8 billion yuan, with an annual core platform order volume of 18.24 billion, representing a 14% year-on-year increase. Of these, China mobility orders totaled 13.735 billion, a 10.8% year-on-year rise, with daily average orders climbing to 38.9 million. Since 2023, DiDi’s China mobility business has maintained double-digit order growth for 12 consecutive quarters, and its market share has stabilized.

In terms of financial performance, DiDi achieved revenue of 65.819 billion yuan in the fourth quarter of 2025, an 11.5% year-on-year increase. Full-year revenue for 2025 stood at 226.7 billion yuan, up 9.6% year-on-year. Regarding profitability, the company reported a net profit of 992 million yuan for the year, marking a significant reversal from a loss of 973 million yuan in the first nine months. However, based on Adjusted EBITA, the full-year loss was approximately 3 billion yuan. The domestic business generated an Adjusted EBITA profit of 12.35 billion yuan, which was largely offset by losses in the international business (6.05 billion yuan) and innovative sectors such as autonomous driving and car services (2.63 billion yuan). Roughly 70% of the domestic profit was absorbed by overseas expansion and technology investments.

The overseas business continues to grow rapidly. In 2025, DiDi’s international order volume reached 4.505 billion, a 24.7% year-on-year increase, with a three-year compound annual growth rate of 32%. International GTV rose by 28.2% to 117 billion yuan, accounting for 25.9% of the core platform’s total GTV. In the fourth quarter of 2025 alone, international GTV surged by 47.1% year-on-year to 36.6 billion yuan. The international mobility business has achieved Adjusted EBITA profitability for two consecutive years. Currently, DiDi’s international operations cover 14 countries and regions across Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and Africa, serving over 100 million local users, with Brazil and Mexico contributing approximately 80% of overseas users.

Regarding investments related to vehicles, DiDi’s R&D expenses reached 8.44 billion yuan in 2025, an 8.8% year-on-year increase, while sales and marketing expenses surged by 46% to 16.8 billion yuan. In 2025, DiDi’s Robotaxi service began providing fully unmanned passenger transport in Guangzhou and other areas, completing paid trips for real users in closed and semi-closed scenarios. The company has set a scaling goal to produce 1,000 to 2,000 Robotaxis through GAC in 2026, with a long-term vision to deploy millions of unmanned vehicles by 2030.

Core Technologies

DiDi has established a robust technical moat in the mobility sector, built upon three core underlying capabilities: AI large models, autonomous driving full-stack systems, and intelligent fleet operation technology.

L4 Autonomous Driving Full-Stack Technology serves as DiDi’s primary competitive barrier. After a decade of accumulation, DiDi has mastered the complete L4 autonomous driving technology stack, encompassing perception, decision-making, planning, control, high-precision mapping, hardware integration, and simulation testing. The company has developed a comprehensive technical infrastructure ranging from data loops and simulation platforms to in-vehicle computing units and safety redundancy systems. In collaboration with GAC Aion, the R2 model features the industry’s first mass-produced three-domain fusion computing brain, delivering over 2,000 TOPS of computing power while significantly reducing costs compared to previous generations. By integrating large model technology into perception, prediction, planning, and control, DiDi has achieved a tenfold annual improvement in key technical indicators. By 2026, open-road tests in Guangzhou successfully supported complex scenarios, including urban intersection left turns, unprotected turns, fully unmanned driving, and mixed dispatching.

Hybrid Mobility Network represents DiDi’s unique scaled technology path. This system intelligently mixes Robotaxis with human-driven ride-hailing vehicles in its dispatch algorithm. By analyzing factors such as departure location, dispatch distance, road conditions, and surrounding supply and demand, the system ensures that autonomous vehicles are deployed safely and efficiently in high-potential order areas. The R2 model is scheduled to provide 24/7 fully unmanned commercial services in selected areas of Guangzhou and Beijing.

Data Loop and Simulation System forms the technical foundation for DiDi’s era of large models. Leveraging the widest coverage and highest order density of real-world driving data in China, DiDi utilizes this vast dataset for large model training. The company employs self-developed high-fidelity simulation platforms, such as SimOne, along with autonomous driving scenario generation algorithms, to safely reproduce extreme conditions in virtual environments, thereby accelerating technical iteration. Additionally, DiDi has established the “HuiJuPort” intelligent operation and maintenance center in Guangzhou, which handles Robotaxi anomaly diagnosis, dispatching, and emergency response.

AI Assistant is a key focus for DiDi in 2026. The company’s Mobility AI has launched over 90 service tags—covering features such air freshness, spacious trunk availability, and smooth driving—to provide tailored solutions for diverse scenarios, including transportation for the elderly, children, and business receptions.

Overseas Layout

DiDi's internationalization journey began in 2015 and has now completed a mature evolution from financial investment to full operations, and then to ecosystem synergy. As of 2026, DiDi's international business covers 14 countries including Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Argentina, Peru, Dominican Republic, Panama, Philippines, Japan, South Africa, Australia, and Egypt, providing mobility, food delivery, and financial services.

Latin America Market is DiDi's First Engine of Internationalization. DiDi officially entered in 2018 by acquiring Brazil's 99, retaining the local brand "99" and fully retaining the core team for localized operations. In Brazil, DiDi has accumulated 55 million active users and 1.5 million active drivers, covering over 3,300 towns in Brazil, with a mobility market share of about 40%. The motorcycle mobility "99moto" launched in 2022 has become the fastest-growing category in the past three years, with cumulative orders exceeding 2 billion, and motorcycle driver year-on-year growth of 30%. In Mexico, DiDi's own brand mobility and food delivery market shares have jumped to number one locally. Latin America as a whole carries about 80% of international business users, with daily average orders of about 13 million. DiDi has also developed the dual food delivery brands 99Food and DiDi Food in Latin America, with plans to expand the coverage of food delivery to 100 cities in Brazil in 2026.

Europe, Middle East, and Africa are DiDi's core growth areas for the next stage. At the end of 2025, DiDi joined the Abu Dhabi Intelligent and Autonomous Driving Automotive Industry Cluster SAVI at the autonomous driving level, and reached a strategic cooperation with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office to jointly support regional smart mobility and sustainable transport ecosystem. DiDi Autonomous Driving has clearly designated the UAE as the first stop for its global layout, planning to carry out Robotaxi tests and pilots within 2026. Newly appointed core heads for the Middle East, Africa, Western Europe, and other regions are fully in place. Robotaxi scenario validations are expected to land in the Middle East and Africa markets within the year.

New changes in DiDi's overseas layout also include exploring the deep integration of global broader two-wheelers, financial services, local life, and other super applications. Each overseas business has obtained local regulatory payment and financial service licenses.

Future Outlook

In 2026, DiDi’s strategic engine is clearly evolving in the direction of “deepening the domestic market, achieving breakthroughs internationally, and accelerating the transition in autonomous driving.”

Robotaxi Commercialization Acceleration is DiDi’s most distinct strategy. The R2, recognized as the world’s first pre-installed, mass-produced L4 Robotaxi developed through a joint venture, completed its first batch of deliveries in early 2026 and secured intelligent connected vehicle road test licenses in Guangzhou and Beijing. Throughout 2026, the R2 will undergo batch demonstration operations in these two major cities, transitioning to commercial, fee-based services upon obtaining full road rights. DiDi aims to scale deployment across multiple cities by 2027, with a long-term vision of deploying millions of autonomous vehicles by 2030. Zhang Bo, CEO of DiDi Autonomous Driving, emphasized that unlike the paths taken by Tesla and NVIDIA, DiDi will drive the evolution of autonomous driving technology through its “Hybrid Mobility Network.” This approach leverages over 55 million daily orders to facilitate cold starts and continuous iteration. In 2026, DiDi also plans to expand Robotaxi services globally by collaborating with more international automakers and autonomous driving partners.

International Business Shifting from “Getting Big” to “Getting Better”: While DiDi’s international mobility GTV grew by 47% year-on-year in 2025 and the mobility sector remained profitable for two consecutive years, strategic losses in the food delivery business resulted in a total international sector loss of 6.05 billion yuan for the year. In 2026, DiDi aims to narrow this loss rate while maintaining high growth. The synergistic value of combining food delivery, financial services, and mobility in Latin America is expected to emerge, with localized financial products and payment methods introduced to improve user retention and monetization. Additionally, DiDi plans to introduce autonomous driving technology to countries like Brazil, using L4 Robotaxis to reduce operating costs per kilometer.

Perfection of Energy Services and Charging/Swapping Ecosystem serves as key support for DiDi’s new energy closed loop. The CATL-DiDi joint venture will rapidly expand the network of battery-swapping stations in major cities. Combined with XiaoJu Charging’s infrastructure of thousands of charging stations, this initiative aims to gradually reduce energy replenishment costs for new energy ride-hailing vehicles on the platform. Furthermore, it will extend into the power trading industry chain, including energy storage and virtual power plants.

Collaborative Building by Automakers and Technology Companies is a crucial component of DiDi’s vehicle-related strategy. Having moved away from self-developed car manufacturing, DiDi has refocused on partnerships such as the AIDI Program with GAC Aion, feeding mobility scenario big data back into R&D, and developing battery-swapping solutions with CATL. By stepping back from direct manufacturing, DiDi has returned more purely to its “Mobility Operations + Technology Platform” role, flexibly driving the intelligent transformation of future mobility.