Uber hires Expedia boss as new CEO in bid to repair damage
UBER has appointed Dara Khosrowshahi, the boss of online travel agency Expedia, as its new chief executive as it looks to repair its reputation following a string of scandals.
The decision to hire Mr Khosrowshahi comes two months after the departure of former boss Travis Kalanick, who bowed to shareholder pressure and stepped down after months of chaos at the ride-hailing company.
Uber’s board has been meeting daily to discuss who to appoint as the company’s new leader. With speculation mounting in recent weeks, two of the
Uber has been ravaged by a series of high-profile departures and months of controversies
He has been one of the most outspoken bosses in the industry against president Donald Trump
favourites for the job – Meg Whitman, the Hewlett Packard boss, and Jeffrey Immelt, the former General Electric chief executive – both publicly said they would not be taking the helm.
Mr Khosrowshahi makes the move after 12 years in charge of Expedia, where revenues have grown from $2.1bn (£1.6bn) in 2005 to $8.7bn in 2016. He was the highest paid chief executive in the US in 2015.
The Iranian-american, who is a Silicon Valley outsider having been based in Washington with Expedia, is a surprise choice for the top job. Despite Ms Whitman saying last month she would not be taking the role, she remained in contention and was thought by many to be the Uber board’s favourite. Mr Khosrowshahi has been one of the most outspoken bosses in the industry against president Donald Trump. He opposed Mr Trump’s Muslim travel ban and tweeted earlier this month: “I keep waiting for the moment when our [president] will rise to the expectations of his office and he fails, repeatedly.”
Mr Khosrowshahi will be tasked with returning stability to Uber, which has been ravaged by a series of highprofile departures following months of controversies.
In the absence of a senior executive team, including a chief financial officer, chief operating officer and general counsel, Uber has been run by a management committee.
In a tumultuous year, it has had to contend with repeated blows to its reputation, including a legal battle with Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving company, and allegations that sexual harassment was endemic in its ranks. Those events, combined with growing concerns over the behaviour of Mr Kalanick, led to shareholders representing 40pc of Uber’s voting power asking the former boss to step down in June.
It has emerged that Benchmark Capital, one of Uber’s largest investors, has launched legal action against Mr Kalanick. But he said the case was “riddled with lies and false allegations”.
News of Mr Khosrowshahi’s departure sent Expedia shares down by more than 4pc in early trading in the US.
A spokesman for Uber declined to comment on his appointment, saying that “the board has voted and will announce the decision to the employees first”.