Didi to seek global opportinities with AI and big data

Chinese ride-sharing giant Didi Chuxing will explore ways to export its artificial intelligence and strength in big data to become a global enterprise, President Jean Liu told the Nikkei Asian Review in an interview. The company, known for its ride-hailing platform, on Thursday announced a plan for its joint venture with Japanese tech giant SoftBank to bring taxi hailing services to Japan staring this autumn. That same time day, however, SoftBank Group founder Masayoshi Son referred to the Japanese government as "stupid" for restricting ride-sharing and other services. Still, Didi and SoftBank hope their partnership with Japanese taxi companies using Didi algorithms to match drivers with customers will improve vehicle occupancy rates. Drivers will not have to pay fees for the service.