I spend a lot of time at Fox 5 covering startups. One of the biggest compliments you can pay a startup is to call it a disruptor, changing not just local business, but entire industries across the country and even around the world.
The transformation of the taxi and black car business is thanks largely to Uber. In less than a decade, Uber seemingly has become larger than life.
Travis Kalanick and partner Garrett Camp came up with the idea while trying to get a cab in Paris back in 2008. Their solution: Tap your smartphone, get a ride. Uber launched in beta in San Francisco in summer 2010 with a seed round of just $200,000. In 2014 at the Time 100 red carpet, Kalanick said Uber had maybe, finally, gotten to mass market.
It is certainly mass market today. Uber is currently valued at nearly $70 billion, has over 10,000 employees, and more than a million drivers operating in 528 cities around the world.
--ALISON MORRIS
21 окт 2024