Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani on Investing in Lyft

The transcript discusses global investment strategies, focusing on the sharing economy and ridesharing. It highlights challenges in launching Lyft in Japan due to legal issues and strong taxi unions. The investment strategy emphasizes corporate ventures with a focus on future relevance and excellent performance. The competition between Uber and Lyft is analyzed, noting the importance of having multiple players in the market to avoid antitrust issues and ensure healthy competition.

What is one of the main reasons for investing in companies like Lyft according to the speaker?

• To increase immediate profits

• To understand future trends in autonomous driving

• To dominate the e-commerce market

• To diversify into unrelated industries

What is a significant challenge for launching ridesharing services in Japan?

• Insufficient technology infrastructure

• Lack of interest from consumers

• High operational costs

• Legal restrictions and strong taxi unions

How does the speaker's company use technology from its portfolio companies?

• To enter the real estate market

• To develop new hardware products

• To enhance their shopping experience

• To create new social media platforms

What is the speaker's view on having multiple players in the ridesharing market?

• It is essential to prevent monopolies

• It reduces the quality of service

• It leads to unnecessary competition

• It complicates regulatory compliance

What demographic did the speaker find encouraging for Lyft's growth?

• Tourists visiting the city

• Senior citizens

• Young people in San Francisco

• Middle-aged professionals

Why does the speaker believe having at least two companies in the ridesharing market is beneficial?

• To ensure competitive innovation

• To increase prices

• To simplify market entry

• To reduce marketing costs

What was the financial situation of Lyft when the speaker decided to invest?

• They had no competition

• They were already profitable

• They had a surplus of funds

• They were facing a high burn rate