Perhaps the inclusion of "Uber" in the app title has led to certain assumptions about this outfit.
I think it is natural to compare them to Uber. They put Uber in their name and according to the BBC article “Carlos Oliveira says they aim to have the largest aircraft fleet in the world without actually owning the planes” which suggests another Uber is exactly who they are trying to be.
It looks to me like they have modified the concept of Uber to fit the rules rather than rethinking private ride sharing.
As for legality who knows how the regulators will react and what additional conditions they may decide to come up with. In my opinion when passengers become customers regardless of the structure then the regulators will have a problem.