The battle between Uber, the ride-hailing service, and established taxi companies is heating up with the launch of Karhoo, a new app that hits London next month (Alexandra Frean writes).
Karhoo has signed up fleets of licensed cabs in big cities worldwide, including Addison Lee in London. When users call up a car on the app, they are given a choice from local providers and can select their driver based on price, estimated time of arrival, local knowledge and quality of service.
Daniel Ishag, the British entrepreneur behind the company, said: “Over the past 15 years, nearly $1 trillion has been spent educating the consumer to go to comparison shopping sites. I see Karhoo as a natural extension of the comparison industry.”
The New York-based start-up has raised an estimated $250 million from venture capitalists and has plans to raise $1 billion. Mr Ishag said that Karhoo’s system would allow users to book cars across borders, adding: “You will be able to book a car to take you to Heathrow and at the same time book a ride to pick you up in Singapore.”