Uber chief Dara Khosrowshahi hints at future stock market debut for ride-sharing company 15

Freshly hired Uber chief Dara Khosrowshahi met with employees on Wednesday, promising to fight for the company and hinting a stock market debut is in its future.

Mr Khosrowshahi wore an Uber t-shirt as he was introduced to workers during an “all-hands” gathering at the San Francisco headquarters, according to photos posted online.

Mr Khosrowshahi tweeted a picture of his new Uber employee access badge, and said that it functioned as promised.

While speaking with Uber workers, Mr Khosrowshahi shared his opinion that the private company should go public, hinting that could happen in 18 to 36 months, according to The Wall Street Journal and other US media.

Uber announced Tuesday that it hired Expedia boss Mr Khosrowshahi as its new chief executive, hoping that he can steer the ridesharing service away from the string of controversies it has faced in the past year.

Mr Khosrowshahi is credited with turning Expedia into a global travel services behemoth, winning admiration from employees along the way.

He replaces Uber cofounder Travis Kalanick, who was pressured to resign as chief of the leading smartphone-summoned ride service.

Mr Khosrowshahi is known as an experienced top executive, willing to speak his mind and to advocate for women getting equal pay and leadership opportunities.