Adani & Uber: Future Collaboration Hints After CEO Meeting

New Delhi, Feb 24 (PTI) Billionaire Gautam Adani on Saturday met Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who is currently on a visit to India, and hinted at possible future collaborations between his conglomerate and the ride-hailing app.

Taking to X, both business leaders appreciated their conversation on the Indian growth story and their vision for the subcontinent.

"Absolutely captivating chat with @dkhos, CEO of @Uber. His vision for Uber's expansion in India is truly inspiring, especially his commitment to uplifting Indian drivers and their dignity. Excited for future collaborations with Dara and his team! #UberIndia," Adani said in a post on X.

The Uber CEO said he met the head of ports-to-energy conglomerate over breakfast for an "absolutely terrific conversation". He also highlighted the mobility service provider's commitment to accelerate EV transition in India.

Adani also posted pictures of the meeting but the two did not say where the meeting took place. The pictures seem to suggest the meeting took place at Adani group's headquarters in Ahmedabad.

"An absolutely terrific conversation with @gautam_adani over a delicious breakfast about India's phenomenal growth and rising entrepreneurship. @Uber is committed to scaling up shared mobility and accelerating transition to EVs -- looking forward to take our partnership to the next level," Dara replied to Adani's post.

The Uber CEO arrived in India earlier this week. During this time, the ride-sharing platform Uber on February 22 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to explore an integration with the network to expand the range of mobility offerings on the Uber app.

The partnership with ONDC, a non-profit private organisation founded by the Indian government's Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, is expected to advance Uber's objective of providing all Indians with dependable, safe, and reasonably priced rides.

Khosrowshahi also discussed "Building Population Scale Technology" with Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani at an event in Bengaluru.

In Delhi, he met Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal as well as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday.

"Encouraging to hear the optimism of Uber CEO @dkhos on doing business in India. The world takes note of the transformation of the last decade. And awaits the coming opportunities. Good to know that he even tried his hand at cricket," Jaishankar said in a post on X on Friday.

"Held a discussion with Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of @Uber. Deliberated on the company's vision for India's growth & strengthening the partnership considering our unparalleled digital infrastructure," Goyal said in a separate post on his meeting on X on Friday.

Adani group is investing USD 100 billion across businesses, including in energy transition, over the next decade. It is building 10 GW of solar manufacturing capacity as well as a giant farm to generate electricity from sunlight. It is also investing in battery swapping and EV charging stations.

Uber is globally replacing its fleet with electric vehicles. Earlier this month, it said its eco-friendly, global EV service, Uber Green is now available in Delhi.