Acquired Episode 31: The Uber - Didi Chuxing Merger with Brad Stone, author of The Upstarts & The Everything Store
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Mar 1, 2017 Brad Stone, author of The Upstarts & The Everything Store, talks about the rise and competition between Didi Chuxing and Uber in the Chinese ride-sharing market. The podcast explores the challenges faced by both companies, the impact of their merger, and the aggressive approach of Uber. It also touches on Uber's investment in self-driving cars and discusses Vanta, a security compliance platform.
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Cheng Wei's Humiliations
- Cheng Wei, Didi's CEO, faced early career setbacks like leaving an exam page blank and not selling any insurance policies.
- These experiences fueled his drive and contributed to Didi's success.
Mobile Payments War
- Didi and Kuaidi's competition intensified as they became proxies in a mobile payments war between Tencent and Alibaba.
- This led to massive funding and aggressive ride subsidization.
Seven Days, Seven Nights
- During intense competition, Didi engineers worked tirelessly, even to the point of medical emergencies.
- This anecdote highlights the extreme pace and dedication in China's tech scene.