News

Careem Suspends Its Ride-Hailing Services In Qatar

The announcement comes without any official explanation, though is thought to be due to a lack of regulatory approval.

Published

1 year ago

February 28, 2023

careem suspends its ride-hailing services in qatar

Yesterday (Monday, February 27), Uber Technologies sent a message to customers informing them that Careem, the Dubai-based company acquired by the ride-hailing giant in 2019 for $3.1 billion, will cease operations in Qatar today.

The surprise announcement comes just two months after Qatar’s soccer World Cup, which saw Careem-branded vehicles forming part of the official transport infrastructure, alongside Uber cars and local taxis from Karwa.

careem qatar message to users

“Unfortunately, Careem’s ride-hailing operations will no longer operate in Qatar as of February 28, 2023,” informed the message, telling customers that Careem credit would be refunded by March 15, 2023.

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Careem’s message did not explain the cancellation of the service, and no one has responded to requests for comment, including parent company Uber.

Careem only offered ride-hailing services in Qatar, unlike larger Middle Eastern markets like the United Arab Emirates, where the super app also provides food delivery, digital payments and courier services.

The company suspended its services in Lebanon last year due to the unfavorable economic situation in the country.

News

Joby To Establish All-Electric Air Taxi Ecosystem Across The UAE

The comprehensive agreement with Abu Dhabi’s government includes a training program, infrastructure development, and a manufacturing presence.

Published

2 days ago

May 1, 2024

Nour Nasir

joby to establish all-electric air taxi ecosystem across the uae

Joby Aviation

All-electric aircraft company Joby Aviation has secured three separate agreements with departments of Abu Dhabi’s government that lay the groundwork to develop and scale air taxi services in the Emirate and beyond.

The deal was signed at the recent DRIFTx thought-leadership and exhibition platform and gave Joby exclusive rights to not only operate air taxi services in Dubai but also unlock inter-emirate services between Abu Dhabi.

joby air taxi partnership abu dhabi

Joe Ben Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby Aviation, said: “Today’s agreement demonstrates the incredible momentum behind the adoption of clean flight across the UAE. We’re looking forward to delivering a fantastic experience for our future customers in Abu Dhabi and we’re excited to be unlocking the potential for zero-emissions flight between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. We’re grateful for the support and collaboration of our governmental partners and the entire ecosystem in Abu Dhabi and we remain deeply impressed by their commitment to building out a world-class aviation ecosystem in the Emirate”.

Joby’s all-electric aircraft went on display for the first time in Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina at the DRIFTx event. The air taxi is designed to carry a pilot and four passengers and can reach speeds of 200 miles per hour (321 km/h). The zero-emission craft is said to have an extremely low acoustic footprint and can travel a maximum of 100 miles (161 km) on a single charge.

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Once operational, Joby’s air taxi fleet would enable fast, clean travel across the UAE, with journeys between Abu Dhabi to Dubai taking just 30 minutes compared with two hours by car during peak times.

Joby continues to work closely with the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) to help the Emirates become a world leader in the introduction of air taxis. Additional testing and analysis will be required before inter-emirate travel becomes a reality, but the cutting-edge technology already appears to have great potential.