The collaboration will start in Europe and Latin America and will eventually extend to the Middle East, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, although it will not include the United States.
This initiative aims to make green transportation more accessible and affordable for Uber drivers by offering competitive pricing and financing options for BYD’s EVs. The partnership also includes plans to integrate BYD’s vehicles with self-driving technologies and jointly develop autonomous driving vehicles.
"Together with Uber, we want to make green transportation accessible and affordable for everyone. This collaboration marks a new era in the electrification of urban mobility," commented Stella Li, CEO of BYD Americas.
To support the transition to EVs, Uber and BYD will provide drivers with discounts on vehicle maintenance, charging, financing, and leasing, which will vary by market. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi highlighted the environmental benefits, noting that an Uber driver switching to an EV can achieve up to four times the emissions reductions compared to a regular driver due to their increased time on the road.
This partnership comes as Tesla, BYD’s U.S. rival, prepares to unveil its robotaxi product in October following a dip in EV sales in the first half of the year. Despite BYD surpassing Tesla as the world’s largest electric vehicle maker last year, Tesla has since reclaimed the top position.
In January, Uber announced its collaboration with Tesla to promote EV use by its drivers in the U.S., aiming for emission-free operations in U.S. and Canadian cities by 2030.
BYD delivered over 3 million electric vehicles in 2023 and aims to increase that to 4 million in 2024. In the first half of the year (January – June), BYD sold 1.6 million EVs.
Source: Uber