Zhihu Finance App has reported that CMSC has released a research report stating that CAOCAO INC (02643) is a ride-hailing platform empowered by Geely Group, maintaining a stable second place in market share. Supported by Geely’s manufacturing capabilities, the company has a solid cost advantage in custom vehicles. Its differentiated quality services enhance user retention. With continuous penetration into lower-tier markets and steady growth in higher-tier markets, CAOCAO INC is expected to sustain growth faster than the industry average, with substantial profit potential relative to industry leaders. The autonomous driving segment is building a competitive edge based on an integrated industrial layout of intelligent vehicle manufacturing, smart driving technology, and intelligent platform operations. The company is optimistic about its long-term growth and profitability potential, especially its Robotaxi business. Key insights from CMSC include:
CAOCAO INC: A Leading Ride-hailing Platform Empowered by Geely Group CAOCAO INC benefits from Geely's automotive manufacturing, with Geely Group's Chairman Li Shufu holding 77% of the shares as the company's controlling shareholder. CAOCAO INC maintains a solid second place nationally, with revenue growing rapidly in recent years, achieving a 39% CAGR from 2022 to 2024. The company successfully went public on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2025, marking the beginning of a new phase of scale expansion and technological upgrades.
Business Model and Competitive Advantage: Custom Vehicle Fleet + Differentiated Services Creating Competitive Edge CAOCAO INC has the largest custom vehicle fleet in China's ride-hailing industry, leveraging Geely Group's robust manufacturing and service support to build differentiated competitiveness. Its custom vehicle ecosystem lowers supply-side costs significantly, resulting in higher income for drivers, coupled with a stable volume of orders and a standardized management system to attract a sufficient number of quality drivers. On the demand side, CAOCAO INC primarily sources orders from aggregated platform requests, reinforcing brand recognition and user loyalty through high brand awareness and differentiated quality service experiences.
Future Potential: Growth Driven by Market Penetration in Lower-tier Cities with Significant Profitability Improvement On the growth front, CAOCAO INC is accelerating penetration into lower-tier markets. In the first half of 2025, the company plans to enter 27 new cities by selling custom vehicles to local capacity partners. Looking ahead, the company aims to deepen its presence in higher-tier markets and expand into new lower-tier cities, further enhancing its market share. Regarding profitability, the commission rate has potential for further optimization as custom vehicle costs decline, and improvements in user subsidy efficiency and scale effects are expected to drive upward pressure on UE, suggesting substantial profit improvement potential when benchmarked against industry leaders like Didi.
Autonomous Driving: Creating a 「Vehicle + Technology + Operation」 Closed Loop Based on Geely’s Ecosystem In February 2025, CAOCAO INC officially launched its autonomous driving platform, CAOCAO ZhiXing, which integrates Geely Group's "Qianli Haohan" Robotaxi solution, marking the transition of its autonomous driving operations from technical validation to scene-based operations. The core advantage of CAOCAO INC’s autonomous driving business lies in its unique "smart manufacturing + smart driving + smart operation" triad model. The company aims to officially start commercial operations for driverless vehicles by 2027, showcasing confidence in its development potential in the Robotaxi field.