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German auto giant Daimler AG (Daimler) and Chinese carmaker Geely Holding Group Co (Geely) had announced the creation of an upscale ride-hailing joint venture in China using premium vehicles. The fleet which would initially use Mercedes-Benz vehicles including the ultra-luxury Maybach brand was likely to be supplemented by Geely's own line up of electric vehicles. The 50-50 joint venture between the auto makers focused on creating shared mobility services in the Chinese market that had been controlled by market leader Didi Chuxing (Didi). The emergence of disruptive technologies and the shift in consumers' preference from car owning to ride sharing were forcing auto makers like Daimler and Geely to expand their ride-hailing services to stay competitive. The proposed tie-up seemed to target an expanding market for the new type of on-demand mobility services that was hitherto controlled by ride-hailing platforms like Didi and Uber Technologies Inc. With the deal, the Chinese carmaker would access a prominent German brand and a world-class technology pipeline, while Daimler in return would venture into the world's largest mobility-services market with Geely's expertise. Amidst this scenario, can the Daimler-Geely partnership make headway into China's ride-hailing market? Can both the automakers with prior experience in ride sharing services be able to ramp up competition in Didi's home turf?