Ride-sharing platform Uber announced a “multi-year strategic partnership” with Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker BYD. The partnership will see the introduction of 100,000 new EVs to the Uber platform while the two companies will also work together on developing autonomous-capable vehicles.
According to Uber’s press release, its drivers will get “best-in-class pricing and financing for BYD vehicles” as part of the partnership. The goal is to ease the cost of Uber drivers transitioning to EVs and introduce “greener” transportation options for riders. Uber drivers will also get discounts on “charging, vehicle maintenance, or insurance,” depending on their needs and the market they are in.
The project will first roll out in Latin America and Europe before making its way to regions like Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Canada.
Additionally, Uber and BYD will work on the development of autonomous-capable vehicles that will be deployed on Uber’s platform in the future.
“As the largest global agreement of its kind, we are thrilled about the benefits this partnership will deliver for drivers, riders, and cities,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in the release.
The partnership will not make it to the United States, where Chinese EVs are almost non-existent. This isn’t likely to change in the future, considering that tariffs on EVs from China are expected to keep going up.
It also remains to be seen how Uber and BYD’s partnership in Europe ends up playing out as the European Union recently also ramped up tariffs on Chinese EVs to 37.6%.