Welcome to the Tech Weekly, NEO’s regular news monitoring of key developments in the food and mobility tech industries.
This week’s highlights:
- Uber Technologies Inc. wants to expand its zero emissions pledge to food-delivery and make the business environmentally sustainable, but Chief Executive Officer Dara Khosrowshahi stopped short of committing to do so by a 2030 deadline for its ride-hailing arm. (Bloomberg)
- InDriver, a ride-hailing app founded in Yakutsk, Siberia, back in 2012, was valued at $1.23bn as it raised $150mn this past February from leading North American funds. InDriver is a new unicorn that emerged discreetly earlier this year in the globalized Russian-speaking startup entrepreneur community. (bne IntelliNews)
- An investment arm of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, targeted in a regulatory crackdown, will divest its entire stake of 5.01% in broadcaster Mango Excellent Media Co Ltd. (Reuters)
- According to a new study from engineering and public policy researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, trips in ride-share cars are more damaging to the climate, and impose a greater cost to society in terms of traffic congestion and public safety, than journeys in private vehicles. (Quartz)
- Abu Dhabi will soon used advanced drones to distribute and transfer medical supplies within its health-care sector. The Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DoH), the emirate’s health-care regulator, announced the round-the-clock delivery system on Tuesday and said that drones would use 40 stations across the emirate by 2022. (Gulf News)
- Initiated on July 2, the Chinese government’s cybersecurity review of ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing will mark its 60th day this Friday. The pace of the investigation showed that regulators are exercising prudence in this case, the resolution of which may affect the company’s investors. (SCMP)
- Amazon has launched Prime Video Channels in India, allowing its customers to subscribe to eight streaming services including Discovery+ and Mubi from one hub (Prime Video website or app), the latest in a series of efforts by the U.S. giant to win customers in the South Asian nation. (TechCrunch)
- U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he will tell Jeff Bezos that Amazon.com Inc. must pay its fair share of taxes in the country when the two meet on Monday. (Bloomberg)
- Chinese transportation giant DiDi Chuxing has launched operations in Egypt, beginning at the Alexandria governorate. The company will operate ‘Wasalny’ or ‘Wasalny +’ services in a move that rivals competitors Uber. (Tech in Africa)