Apple Gives Up Board Seat at Chinese Ride-Hailing Company Didi

Apple has given up its board seat at Didi Global as the Chinese ride-hailing company struggles to return to growth following crushing fines and restrictions imposed by Beijing's cyberspace regulator, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Tim Cook Beijing Didi Chuxing

Apple CEO Tim Cook with Didi Chuxing president Jean Liu in 2016

Adrian Perica, Apple's vice president of corporate development, resigned from the board earlier this month, according to a notice posted on Didi's website.

Perica, who heads Apple's mergers and acquisitions strategy, joined Didi's board in 2016 after Apple made a $1 billion investment in the the ride hailing app. The move was described by CEO ‌‌Tim Cook‌‌ at the time as a "strategic investment" that would help Apple better understand the Chinese market.

The problems started for Didi last year, when Apple was informed by China's internet regulator that it must remove the Didi Chuxing ride hailing app from the Chinese App Store, after Beijing raised concerns about the Uber rival's possible misuse of personal data.

Didi's removal from China's mobile app stores effectively hamstrung the company and the action erased more than 80% of its market value. Then last month, following a year-long investigation, Didi was fined $1.2 billion by the Chinese government for infractions that Beijing said compromised national security.

The decision followed broader moves by Beijing to curb the influence of China's largest internet corporations and tighten the ownership of the personal data of hundreds of millions of users held by the likes of Alibaba, Tencent, and others.

Apple's investments and acquisitions have dramatically slowed over the past two years, with the tech giant being more selective in the face of a shaky economy and heightened government scrutiny.

Popular Stories

Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system. In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Event in October? Here's What to Expect

Monday September 29, 2025 9:31 am PDT by
Apple's annual iPhone event is in the rearview mirror, but rumors suggest the company plans to release a handful of additional products before the year ends. Will there be another Apple event this October? We discuss the possibility below. Apple in October Apple's most recent October events were in 2021 and 2023. In 2022 and 2024, Apple did not host an October event. Instead, it...
iOS 26

Apple Continues to Prepare iOS 26.0.1 With Multiple Bug Fixes Expected

Sunday September 28, 2025 1:30 pm PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The account initially said iOS 26.0.1 would have a build number of 23A350, but they now expect the update to have a build number of 23A355. This suggests that the software update will include more bug fixes or changes than initially...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pro Nears Mass Production, But Four Bigger Upgrades Expected Next Year

Sunday September 28, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next MacBook Pro models will enter mass production soon, according to the latest information shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said he continues to believe the new MacBook Pro models will be released at some point between late 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, meaning they should be available to order by March at the latest. Apple often...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.0.1 With Fixes for Wi-Fi, Cellular, and Camera Issues on iPhone 17 Models

Monday September 29, 2025 10:12 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 26.0.1 and iPadOS 26.0.1, the first updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems that came out earlier this week. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes for the update, iOS 26.0.1 addresses a bug that could cause aberrations in...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iPhone 16 Pro Max 80% Charge Limit: One Year Later, Was It Worth It?

Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line. Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
iphone 17 ceramic shield

Regular iPhone 17's USB-C Charging Speeds Tested With Apple Chargers

Friday September 26, 2025 9:01 am PDT by
The website ChargerLAB has tested the standard iPhone 17 model's USB-C charging speeds with a variety of Apple's chargers, from 18W to 140W. The device reached a peak charging speed of around 27W to 28W with these Apple chargers:29W USB-C Power Adapter 30W USB-C Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter 40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max...
LG UltraFine 6K Display TB5

LG UltraFine 6K (32U990A) TB5 Display: Pre-Orders Open September 30

Monday September 29, 2025 6:21 am PDT by
Pre-orders for LG's new UltraFine evo 6K display (model 32U990A) with Thunderbolt 5 support will begin on September 30, according to a major U.S. retailer listing. LG first revealed the 32-inch display at CES 2025 in January, teasing its status as the first monitor to support Thunderbolt 5. At the time, LG only provided high-level specs, but left pricing, availability, and full technical...
AirPods Pro 3 Newsroom

Apple's 'Back to School' Offer Ends Soon, Now Applies to AirPods Pro 3

Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad. Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value. ...

Top Rated Comments

ponzicoinbro Avatar
40 months ago
Look at the stock price over 5 years of all ride sharing, food delivery, airbnb, wework businesses.

Retail investors deep in the red with big losses. VCs and founders ran off with the money already.

These type of businesses are parasite businesses. They just feast on the blood of the masses while adding costs everywhere.

Your rent is higher because of Airbnb property speculators.

Your pollution is higher because ride sharing clogs the streets and people get tempted to use that instead of public transport.

Zero sum game and zero benefit for the masses. Only a small number of rich people gain.
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
himanshumodi Avatar
40 months ago
Looks like Apple did learn an expensive lesson about China's market.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Onexy Avatar
40 months ago
Data privacy is not the real reason for the fines. In China it never is.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Scipster Avatar
40 months ago
I'm confused. China requested the app be pulled over data privacy concerns? I thought data privacy was a joke under the all-seeing, all-knowing authoritarian state?
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ghanwani Avatar
40 months ago

I'm confused. China requested the app be pulled over data privacy concerns? I thought data privacy was a joke under the all-seeing, all-knowing authoritarian state?
There’s a difference between a company using user data and the state using it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
indychris Avatar
40 months ago

Looks like Apple did learn an expensive lesson about China's market.
It’d be awesome if Apple would learn a lesson about China period. Wishful thinking I s’pose. Few do.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)