It may not sound immediately relevant if you live outside of China, but the partnership could have a significant effect on the automotive world. All three of these companies have joint ventures with American and European car brands due to Chinese requirements -- outside manufacturers may not have to participate, but it may be hard to resist the allure of ridesharing in such a giant market.

If nothing else, this appears to be a shot across the bow of Didi Chuxing, China's dominant ridesharing provider and one of the largest companies of its kind anywhere in the world. It could give Didi serious competition (including in the autonomous vehicle realm) from car brands that are not only heavyweights on its home turf, but state-owned.