Uber decided to halt to a costly two-year battle with its rival in China which had seen the pair slug it out for drivers, passengers and market share.

Uber has given up because Didi Chuxing had too much cash to win the fight. It agreed to give up its independence in return for a nearly one-fifth stake in a bigger Didi. The fact that the app collected a billion from Apple was the key to the decision.

"Both sides raised enormous amounts of capital. They were probably thinking this was going to escalate to nuclear warfare, which raised the question: do we really want to assure mutual destruction?"

Didi unveiled a $7.3 billion funding round in June from investors including Apple, China Life Insurance, Ant Financial and other new shareholders, giving the company a $28 billion valuation - making it the world's third highest-valued venture-backed start-up.

With backing from Chinese Internet giants Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings, Didi says it has $10.5 billion in available funds.

Uber claims to be profitable in the United States, Canada and about 100 cities, and used those earnings to subsidize its China operations. Didi says Uber China made less than $60 million in net profit last year.

Apple's investment made it became even more difficult for Uber to raise money and it spurred Uber to think harder about doing some kind of deal here, analysts think.

Apple and Uber have some relationships - Uber passengers can pay with Apple Pay, and Uber provides its drivers with iPhones. Now that Uber is aligned with Didi, Tung said, opportunities may open up for such a partnership.