Home Uber CEO Spells Out His Endgame

Uber CEO Spells Out His Endgame

This post appears courtesy of the Ferenstein Wire, a syndicated news service. Publishing partners may edit posts. For inquiries, please email author and publisher Gregory Ferenstein.

Since Uber began getting regularly hammered in the press for its aggressive political tactics and potential legal violations, its once outspoken leader hasn’t given the public much direction about the future of his multibillionaire ride-sharing company. 

But CEO Travis Kalanick gave a rare interview in San Francisco today at the mega Dreamforce conference. Among the morsels he doled out, two quotes stood out, largely because they reveal how Uber might see itself changing public life. 

See also: Taxicab Industry Has A New App To Compete With Uber

Traffic Stop

Street congestion may be one of the most annoying aspects of city life, but Kalanick thinks his company has the remedy for it: 

If every car in San Francisco was Ubered, there’d be no traffic.

In the short term, Kalanick says he basically wants to replace every car on the road. Where Uber and Lyft have saturated the market with on-demand drivers, this is actually a realistic goal in the near term. A number of commentators have done the calculations, and it’s cheaper to replace one’s car in San Francisco with ride-sharing. As a Bay Area resident, the availability of cheap transportation is why I sold my car.

It’s really nice never to worry about parking tickets, drunk driving, gas or maintenance. Not owning a car saves me a ton of time every month. This will be more difficult to achieve in midwestern states and suburban environments, but perhaps Uber can figure out a solution for less urbanized citizens.

Put another way, Uber is looking to fully privatize the transportation industry. 

Transportation Fix

Broadly speaking, Uber seems intent on overhauling the transportation industry.

We want transportation to be as reliable as running water for everyone, in every city in the world.

Instead of a complicated and unreliable system of transit unions, car ownership and delivery services, Uber would try to make getting something from point A to point B much more seamless. 

People spend (a lot) of time buying different services and figuring out how to navigate delivery and transportation. Uber imagines a world where all the complicated logistics are taken care of. All that a user would have to do is press a button. Seems like it would be a less frustrating world, if he—or others—can build it. 

Kalanick’s full interview should be available later on the Dreamforce website

*For more stories like this, subscribe to the Ferenstein Wire newsletter here.

Lead photo courtesy of Shutterstock

About ReadWrite’s Editorial Process

The ReadWrite Editorial policy involves closely monitoring the tech industry for major developments, new product launches, AI breakthroughs, video game releases and other newsworthy events. Editors assign relevant stories to staff writers or freelance contributors with expertise in each particular topic area. Before publication, articles go through a rigorous round of editing for accuracy, clarity, and to ensure adherence to ReadWrite's style guidelines.

Gregory Ferenstein
Staff Writer

Former Staff Writer for ReadWrite. I started my career as a freelance writer in 2009 covering business innovation, did peer-reviewed research on Silicon Valley,(2016), architected bills in Congress (2017), and ran economic field experiments (2019).

Get the biggest tech headlines of the day delivered to your inbox

    By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Unsubscribe anytime.

    Tech News

    Explore the latest in tech with our Tech News. We cut through the noise for concise, relevant updates, keeping you informed about the rapidly evolving tech landscape with curated content that separates signal from noise.

    In-Depth Tech Stories

    Explore tech impact in In-Depth Stories. Narrative data journalism offers comprehensive analyses, revealing stories behind data. Understand industry trends for a deeper perspective on tech's intricate relationships with society.

    Expert Reviews

    Empower decisions with Expert Reviews, merging industry expertise and insightful analysis. Delve into tech intricacies, get the best deals, and stay ahead with our trustworthy guide to navigating the ever-changing tech market.