RIDE-HAILING giant Didi Chuxing is exploring ways of collaborating with established automakers and parts suppliers to jointly develop cars purpose-built for its services, the firm said Tuesday.

Pay-per-use services such as car-sharing and ride-hailing are starting to challenge traditional car ownership in some in some of China’s congested cities, while global automakers are starting to bill themselves as “mobility” companies that do more than just build and sell vehicles.

Didi officials said the disruptive change meant there was a clear mutual interest in new players like itself and traditional manufacturers working together to develop and improve ride-hailing and sharing platforms.

“Traditional automakers have different skillsets and understanding of the market, and those are all valuable to us,” said Kevin Chen, general manager of Didi’s automotive service platform.

Didi currently uses regular passenger cars, but said it sees a need for more dedicated “purpose-built” vehicles. Many would likely be electric vehicles, either all-electric battery cars or plug-in electric hybrids.(SD-Agencies)