A mobility platform exclusively for foreign travelers, k.ride, will be available in 12 additional countries, Kakao Mobility announced Thursday.

Launched last June, k.ride is a ride-hailing app that provides taxi services to international visitors in Korea.


Originally available only in Korea, the service will now be introduced in the United States, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia and Saudi Arabia.

With this expansion, users will be able to access ride-hailing services in the newly added countries through partnerships with local mobility companies, the platform said.

As of March, k.ride has completed more than 600,000 taxi rides, with tourists from around 100 countries having used the service, according to Kakao Mobility.

“k.ride is a global mobility platform tailored to foreigners, with no limitations on languages, accounts or payment methods,” said Ryu Geung-seon, head of Kakao Mobility. “With the launch of this overseas service, we aim to advance the global mobility platform, enabling anyone from anywhere in the world to conveniently use our mobility service.”

BY WOO JI-WON [woo.jiwon@joongang.co.kr]