Danni Santana, Skift
Sometimes it's obvious when a company is growing too fast. This doesn't appear to be one of those times. Oyo wants to be everywhere customers want to vacation.
5 days ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
SoftBank has upended the sales of tours and attractions by investing record-breaking sums in GetYourGuide and Klook. That's boosted valuations to such lofty levels that it may leave only a few options: Merge or go public.
1 month ago
Pavel Alpeyev, Bloomberg
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son is a big believer in Uber, and the company's upcoming initial public offering will make him and his company richer. But it sounds like he's thinking about the more lucrative rewards further down the line.
2 months ago
Eric Newcomer, Bloomberg
The autonomous-car unit is a very costly endeavor with Uber not making any profits. But the latest $1 billion investment helps Uber to go on its IPO roadshow with additional fuel.
2 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
For the first time, an Asian startup, Klook, is attracting the highest funding ever in tours and activities. For the last time, can skeptics of this travel sector please bow out?
3 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
Japan is a destination that’s never, ever described as affordable. But Oyo, with its budget hotel concept, could be transformational for its tourism economy.
3 months ago
Eric Newcomer, Bloomberg
Given the massive bet it has on Uber, SoftBank will want to do all to ensure the ridehailing company's success — including bankrolling Uber’s very expensive self-driving car unit.
3 months ago
Yoolim Lee and Pavel Alpeyev, Bloomberg
Already a major investor in Singapore's Grab, SoftBank is pumping in more big money into the ridehailing company, which is in a two-horse race with Indonesia's Go-Jek to gain dominance in Southeast Asia. We're tightening our seat belts watching this epic battle.
4 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
India's Oyo should feel at home in Japan, home of its biggest financier SoftBank. But will this automatically translate to success for Oyo? This is why it is starting its expansion in Japan with a new long-stay model.
4 months ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
Uber needs to shed its Saudi Arabia investment as long as Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman remains in power, and the country bombs innocents in Yemen. Uber's leaders know they have to do this, but how they dump their Saudi investment and the extent of the divorce remain to be seen.
7 months ago
Kevin Buckland, Pavel Alpeyev and Ma Jie, Bloomberg
After years of pumping investment money into other ridesharing services, two Japanese giants are giving it a go themselves, first with ride hailing and then autonomous vehicles. The stakes are rising.
9 months ago
Won Jae Ko, Pavel Alpeyev, and Ma Jie, Bloomberg
Japan is slowly beginning to shed its isolated characteristics as it prepares to host the 2020 Summer Olympics and also recently legalized alternative accommodations across the country. It will be interesting to see if taxis and successfully collaborate with ride-hailing apps, which hasn't been the case in many other countries.
11 months ago