Chinese ride-hailing company Didi's co-founder Liu steps down

Uber-rival Didi Global Inc’s co-founder Jean Liu has stepped down from her roles as president and board director, according to an internal company memo. She will take on a new role as “permanent partner” and will maintain her current duties including serving as chief people officer, Liu and CEO Will Cheng said in the internal letter sent to employees, Reuters reported.

A former Goldman Sachs banker, Liu had been at the helm of Didi for a decade. “I hope that I can focus more on the company’s long-term development in the future,” Liu said in the letter. He new focus areas will be citing talent and corporate social responsibility. China’s biggest ride-hailing firm will no longer have a position of president, it said in the memo seen by Reuters.

Liu, who is the daughter of Lenovo Group founder Liu Chuanzhi, was heavily involved in the company’s key financial decisions such as its merger with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd-backed Kuaidi in 2015. She also played a major role in Didi’s takeover of Uber Technologies Inc’s China business, and fundraising from investors including Apple Inc.

However, Didi has faced prolonged regulatory scrutiny. In 2021, it found itself in the spotlight of China’s cyberspace regulator over its pursuit of a US IPO without obtaining approval. This prompted an inquiry that prohibited it from adding new users and resulted in many of its apps being removed from major app stores.

Following this, the company was fined USD 1.2 billion in July 2022 over data security violations. It finally began recovering from its regulatory challenges in early 2023 when it received permission to relaunch its apps. But the journey has been a tough one for Didi.

In a separate development, the company last month announced a significant milestone in its foray into the autonomous driving arena. The company’s self-driving unit, in collaboration with EV manufacturer GAC Aion, has obtained a business license, marking the inception of the first joint venture (JV) in China geared towards mass-producing fully self-driving electric robotaxis.