A group photo from an employee gathering has ignited a firestorm of public debate in the shared bicycle industry's competitive landscape.
Recently, a photo from a Hellobike staff party circulated on social media. In the image, several individuals are riding Hellobike bicycles, while others are seen standing on overturned Qingju and Meituan bikes. The group collectively gives a thumbs-up gesture, accompanied by the caption "Getting Better and Better."
This action by Hellobike employees quickly triggered market controversy. Some netizens commented, "The 'spiritual victory' mentality never left this land," calling it "unprofessional behavior." Others recalled, "If I remember correctly, a Hellobike city manager in Kunming was detained a couple of years ago for slashing competitors' bike seats with a knife..."
In response to the incident, Hellobike stated to Sina Technology: "Recently, a photo from a company employee gathering has been circulating on social platforms. The behavior in the photo is inconsistent with the values Hellobike has always promoted and does not represent the overall conduct of our employees. The company has initiated an internal investigation regarding this matter. Hellobike always respects industry partners and advocates for a healthy and rational industry atmosphere."
This afternoon, Hellobike's customer service responded, stating, "This behavior is indeed highly inappropriate. This incident represents the erroneous actions of individual employees and completely contradicts the company's requirements and values. We absolutely do not tolerate such conduct." They added, "Internally, the company has immediately launched an investigation based on this issue, seriously dealt with the involved personnel according to regulations, and simultaneously conducted company-wide education on professional ethics and norms to prevent similar problems from recurring."
A former Hellobike employee, analyzing the reasons for this behavior, suggested that Hellobike experienced a period of unregulated growth in its early stages, prioritizing individuals who could deliver results, who may not necessarily have had high educational backgrounds or professional quality. As these individuals were promoted to higher positions, subordinates may have distorted their actions to please superiors, leading to the emergence of such value-related issues.
According to third-party data, in 2025, Meituan's operational fleet held a 51% market share. Hellobike ranked second with 39.6%, while Didi's Qingju saw its market share shrink to 9.3%. These three companies collectively control 99.9% of the national operational capacity, with intense competition in certain regions.
**Posing with Feet on Qingju and Meituan Bikes: Hellobike Employees Trying to Please Superiors?**
Recently, a photo from a Hellobike employee gathering went viral on social media, instantly thrusting the company into the spotlight of public opinion.
The catalyst for this controversy was a group photo from a gathering of Hellobike employees in the northern region. In the photo, multiple individuals are riding Hellobike bicycles arranged in a circle. In front of them, several Qingju and Meituan bikes are deliberately laid on the ground, with some individuals even standing directly on the competitors' bike frames, all posing with a thumbs-up gesture. Additionally, the employee who posted it on social media wrote: "Getting better and better, keep it up!"
After the photo surfaced, it quickly sparked heated market discussion, with negative sentiment continuously rising. In the comments section, many netizens directly criticized the behavior as "damaging goodwill." Comments included: "The 'spiritual victory' mentality never left this land," "unprofessional conduct," "If I remember correctly, a Hellobike city manager in Kunming was detained a couple of years ago for slashing competitors' bike seats with a knife," and "This feels really low-class..."
Behind this photo lies a decade of rivalry and competitive anxiety within the shared bicycle industry.
Around 2015, the shared bicycle sector witnessed a "hundred-bike battle." Ofo and Mobike were the main rivals, while brands like Bluegogo, Coolqi, and Xiaoming expanded across the country. However, with the rapid increase in the number of vehicles, issues such as haphazard parking, inadequate maintenance, and management problems frequently emerged, with industry chronic issues层出不穷.
After a brutal industry shakeout, a "tripartite standoff"格局最终形成—Didi's Qingju, Meituan Bikes, and Hellobike divided the market.
According to the "2026 China Shared Bicycle Industry Market Scale and Investment Prospects Forecast Analysis Report" released by Boyan Consulting market research data, in terms of market share, Meituan Bikes, with 9.3 million operational vehicles, held a 51.1% market share. Hellobike operated 7.2 million vehicles, accounting for 39.6%. Didi's Qingju's operational fleet decreased to 1.7 million vehicles in 2025, with its market share shrinking to 9.3%. These three companies collectively control 99.9% of the national存量运力, with the industry's CR3 (concentration ratio of the top three firms) reaching a historical peak.
While the landscape appears stable on the surface, competition has actually entered a白热化 stage of "close-quarters combat." Industry growth has peaked. As of 2025, the total national shared bicycle deployment stabilized at 18.2 million vehicles, only a 1.7% increase from 17.9 million in 2024, indicating significantly slowed growth. Competition for the existing market has become the core theme.
Under this decade-long rivalry, the three brands, competing for limited users and deployment quotas, have developed a "宿敌"情结, with irrational competitive乱象层出不穷. Public information shows that prior to this, the industry has repeatedly seen conflicts among operations personnel over location disputes, vehicle relocation leading to physical altercations, and malicious damage to competitors' vehicles.
Although Hellobike has officially responded to this "stepping on Qingju and Meituan bikes" incident, it has not fully平息舆论质疑. Many netizens believe that such extreme behavior by employees is not偶然 but a direct reflection of corporate values and management culture. An industry analyst stated, "This incident essentially exposes低级操作 in industry competition. Real competition should be based on technology, service, and user experience, not maliciously suppressing opponents."
A former Hellobike employee mentioned, "Behind the behavior is motivation; the motivation for doing a specific thing is always to demonstrate a specific orientation to a specific person." They further explained that Hellobike experienced unregulated growth in its early stages, prioritizing "capable individuals" who could "deliver results," who may not necessarily have had high educational backgrounds or professional quality. As these individuals were promoted to higher positions, subordinates may have distorted their actions to please superiors, leading to the emergence of such value-related issues.
**Repeatedly Mired in "Value Controversies," Government Summoned 26 Times**
It is worth noting that this is not the first time Hellobike has been involved in a "values controversy."
In earlier years, media reported that over 40 Qingju bikes in Kaifeng, Henan, had their locks cut. Subsequently, Qingju's Kaifeng operations department filed a police report. After investigation by Kaifeng police, it was found that among the eight suspects involved, seven were employees of Hellobike's Kaifeng operations department, with the remaining suspect having recently left the same department.
Subsequently, Hellobike issued an "Apology and Statement," stating that the nature of the incident was恶劣, causing不良影响 on society and辜负了用户,政府部门厚爱. Simultaneously, the incident严重背离了哈罗单车的价值观和企业使命,并与其所倡导的行业良性竞争相悖. As a company, deep reflection was needed, and they expressed profound歉意. They also proposed hiring lawyers for the involved employees and educating and cultivating employees to establish correct professional values.
However, similar "extreme behavior" did not truly cease within Hellobike.
In the early hours of May 16, 2022, the Lishutou Police Station in Panlong District, Kunming City, Yunnan Province, received a report that a large number of shared e-bike seats had been slashed with sharp objects. That night, a total of 70 e-bikes were damaged, all of which were Meituan's shared e-bikes. Upon investigation, the perpetrator was Li Maomao, the Kunming city manager for Hellobike e-bikes. He was ultimately given 10 days of administrative detention, and the作案工具 were confiscated.
Subsequently, Hellobike responded, stating that the company immediately investigated the incident, which was attributed to the employee's过激行为 after drinking in the early morning. Previously, there had been multiple incidents in the employee's jurisdiction where Hellobike vehicles had their seats slashed, tires removed, and bodies disassembled and报废. The employee's盲目报复的行为 violated the law and has been strictly penalized.
In April of this year, the Beijing Municipal Transportation Law Enforcement Team依法对上海哈啰普惠科技有限公司在北京违规超量投放共享自行车的行为进行立案调查. On April 7, the team received举报线索,反映哈啰公司在中心城区多个点位违规大量投放未备案车辆. The next day, law enforcement officers conducted on-site verification, confirming the举报属实, and依法对哈啰公司进行行政约谈, issuing a "责令改正通知书," requiring整改 by April 10 and the回收未备案车辆. It is noteworthy that on January 28 of this year, the company was行政处罚 for未按规定备案,投放运营或者回收车辆, fined 100,000 yuan.
Public information shows that Yang Lei founded the Hellobike brand in September 2016. The corporate entity of Hellobike出行 is Shanghai Hellobike Puhui Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Shanghai Hellobike"). Its business segments include Hellobike bicycles, Hellobike助力车, Hellobike顺风车, Hellobike租电动车, Xiaoha换电, and Hellobike租车 (cars).
According to relevant data, Shanghai Hellobike Puhui Technology Co., Ltd. has 185 active and存续分支机构. Since 2019, the company has been summoned by the government 26 times. The issues discussed during these summonses include堆积 of shared bicycles,占道摆放,无人管理;超量投放; and违规超量投放共享自行车.
At the product experience level, consumer complaint data on the "Heimao投诉" platform serves as a warning bell for Hellobike's service quality. As of the time of writing, the cumulative number of complaints under Hellobike-related keywords has reached a staggering 117,403, ranking among the top in the shared出行 industry. Issues such as "乱扣车费," "司机态度恶劣," "售后不作为," and "单车质量问题" have become the "重灾区" of user feedback.
Behind the nearly 120,000 complaints lies a signal that demands正视: when the tide of疯狂扩张 recedes, only those who can retain users through service will truly站稳脚跟. For Hellobike, the market's warning bell has already sounded.
Comments