Hello Group Inc.

Founding and bike-sharing expansion

The company originally began as a bicycle-sharing operator under the Hellobike brand and was founded by Yang Lei and Li Kaizhu in 2016. The company initially focused on launching dockless bike-sharing service in China's second- and third-tier cities, where the more established competitors like Mobike and Ofo had limited presence, allowing the company to quickly build market share. It later expanded operations into first-tier cities however it maintained its focus on smaller cities and non-metropolitan areas in China.

During this period, China's bike-sharing industry was highly competitive, with many companies lowering prices and sacrificing profitability in an attempt to rapidly gain market share. Subsequently, the sector underwent significant consolidation in the late 2010s, with a large number of early operators collapsing or leaving the market. Hellobike became one of the few major companies to survive the burst of China's bike-sharing bubble.

Funding and growth

In a series of fundraising rounds dating back to 2016, Hellobike has raised over US$1.8 billion from investors. Ant Group, the company's largest single investor, holds an estimated 36 percent share in Hellobike. In 2018, the company renamed itself as HelloChuxing. By 2020, it emerged as one of the China's largest bike-sharing operators, alongside Meituan Bike and Didi Qingju, with approximately 8 million bikes in China's smaller cities and towns.

Diversification

In addition to bike-sharing, the company has expanded into a wider range of services. In 2018, it partnered with Chinese battery maker CATL in entering the electric scooter rental sector. In 2019, it formed a US$145 million joint venture with CATL to develop an electric bicycle battery-swapping network, that would enable customers to replace and recharge e-bike batteries. By 2020, it had entered the taxi- and ride-hailing industry.

International expansion

In 2022, the company rebranded itself from HelloChuxing to Hello along with a new slogan - "Accompanying you every day". It also launched its international arm under the brand name HelloRide, marking the company's overseas expansion. HelloRide operates in regions including Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Australia, offering shared and rental bicycles.

Robotaxi venture

In 2025, Hello announced it has entered the robotaxi sector and signed a US$422.3 million joint venture with Ant Group and CATL. The new venture, registered as Shanghai Zaofu Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd on June 23, 2025, is focused on the development and commercialization of Level 4 autonomous driving technology. In the same year, Hello also entered into a strategic agreement with Horizon Robotics and Alibaba Group to support the development of the new venture. Hello is a relative latecomer to the robotaxi sector and faces strong competition in the Chinese market that includes Baidu, WeRide and Pony.ai.