'Open to partnering with founder on self-driving cars': Uber CEO
What's the story
Uber's CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has said that the company is open to collaborating with its founder, Travis Kalanick, on his new self-driving car project. This is the first time Uber has publicly considered partnership with Kalanick since he was ousted in 2017 over a series of controversies. During his visit to India, Khosrowshahi said, "We're already working with Travis...If opportunities emerge in other areas, we'd certainly look at them seriously because there are very few entrepreneurs I trust as much,"
Strategic shift
Focusing on partnerships for self-driving cars
After selling its self-driving division to Aurora in 2020, Uber has been focusing on partnerships with companies like Waymo and Motional. The company has also partnered with May Mobility to integrate robotaxis onto its platform. Kalanick, who was previously at the helm of Uber's self-driving efforts, is now said to be gearing up for a new robotics and autonomous vehicle venture with major support from Uber.
CEO outlook
Khosrowshahi's vision for Uber
Khosrowshahi, who took over as Uber's CEO in 2017, has been steering the company toward a more disciplined execution strategy. He said, "All I can do is my best here. Since I joined the company, the business has grown 10 times over." He added that he expects every year to be better than the last one, and if it isn't, he considers it a failure on his part.