Photo credit: Mobike.
Weeks after securing US$215 million in funding, Chinese bike-sharing startup Mobike has received investment cash from Foxconn.
The deal, for an undisclosed sum, sees Foxconn helping with manufacturing of the startup’s smart bikes, which can be unlocked, paid for, and locked again using an app. The plan is to double annual production to 10 million as Mobike expands to new cities across China.
Mobike is also plotting global expansion, starting with an upcoming debut in Singapore.
It’s one of many such startups in China – all fighting over users who pay a just few cents per hour to rent the bikes. Mobikes cost US$0.15 per hour.
“This partnership is all about bringing more bikes to more cities around the world,” said Davis Wang, co-founder and CEO of Mobike. He wants to “enable residents in a hundred cities in China and internationally” to turn to the service’s bikes as an alternative to cars or public transport for short trips.
The startup launched at the end of 2015.
Mobike and its many rivals have been plagued by vandalism of its bikes, as well as inconsiderate users leaving them in inaccessible places.
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