UAE Telecom Giant e& Sells Stake in Careem Back to Uber, Abandoning Super App Strategy
UAE-based e& has agreed to sell 12.5% of Careem Technologies back to Uber for $100 million, reducing its stake from 50% to 37.5% and signaling retreat from its super app ambitions. The company invested $400 million in 2023 betting on an all-in-one platform model popular in China but proving difficult to execute in the UAE market. The deal includes options for full exit by late 2031, reflecting challenges from government-consolidated services platforms and emerging AI agents.
UAE telecom giant e& has agreed to sell a 12.5% stake in Careem Technologies back to Uber for $100 million, reducing its majority holding to 37.5% and effectively abandoning its super app strategy. The company had invested $400 million for its initial stake in 2023, betting on a platform that would consolidate food delivery, digital wallets, bike rentals, and other services into a single application—a model that has proven successful in China but difficult to execute in the UAE market. The retreat reflects multiple headwinds: Abu Dhabi's government-backed TAMM platform has consolidated hundreds of public services into a single offering, while the emergence of AI agents capable of ordering deliveries, booking services, and processing payments threatens to make the traditional super app concept obsolete. The deal structure includes a put option allowing e& to force Uber to purchase its remaining stake from late 2031 onward, with Uber holding a mirroring call option, effectively providing a path to full exit within the specified timeframe.
What different sources said
- SemaforCenter
UAE telecom giant e& gives up plan to build a 'super app'
Related
Blacksmith CI Service Charges $1,081 to User on Free Trial Without Credit Card on File
A developer team using Blacksmith, a GitHub Actions alternative, received a $1,081 invoice after exceeding free tier limits without having provided a credit card. The company's free trial continued accruing charges rather than stopping service, contrary to typical SaaS conventions. The incident raises questions about whether such billing practices are legally permissible and whether they align with user expectations.
Apple Testing Camera-Equipped AirPods for AI-Enhanced Siri, But Privacy Concerns May Delay Launch
Apple has designed AirPods with built-in cameras to give Siri visual context for user requests and is in late-stage testing with employees, according to Bloomberg reporting. The cameras would enable features like landmark-based navigation, food identification, and smarter contextual assistance, though they would not record photos or video like smart glasses. However, Wired reports Apple may delay the product due to insufficient AI capabilities and executive concerns about privacy risks without compelling use cases.
AI Companies Adopt Serif Fonts to Signal Trustworthiness and Human Touch
AI companies like Claude, Perplexity, and Runway are increasingly using serif fonts in their branding and user interfaces, a shift designers attribute to efforts to make artificial intelligence appear more human and trustworthy. Serif typefaces, historically associated with print media, books, and authority, contrast with the cleaner sans-serif fonts often perceived as computer-like and cold. The trend reflects broader public skepticism about AI and companies' attempts to build confidence in their products through design choices that evoke human craftsmanship and reliability.