Dara Khosrowshahi, head of Uber, spoke in a recent interview for the media Wired. On the menu of this exchange: the profitability strategies of his company, the confidence of his users and the innovations in preparation.
When Dara Khosrowshahi took over as CEO of Uber in 2017, the company was in bad shape. The company’s strategy was focused primarily on absolute growth, but Dara changed that by building a more sustainable profitability model. This transformation has gone through radical decisions to restore the confidence of users of the group’s various applications and reposition Uber as a major player in the market.
The road to profitability: the end of the fall in prices
When Dara Khosrowshahi took the reins of Uber, the company was very competitive in terms of pricing, perhaps even too much. Its predecessor had engaged Uber in a rather extreme policy: to pull prices down as much as possible to attract users. Dara Khosrowshahi made the bold decision to put an end to this somewhat crazy race to ensure more reasonable, but also more balanced growth in the long term. Fears of users turning away from the platform were there at the start, but that didn’t happen.
Uber is located in a very competitive market (Bolt, Heetch or Lyft for example). But according to the words of the CEO. : “ Lyft are not our biggest competitors. Our real competitors are people who own one or two cars. These people represent less than 5% of the kilometers traveled by our drivers. The ultimate goal for us is to get them to get rid of that second car, but also the first “.
Uber for Teens and self-driving taxis
The company has launched the “Uber for Teens” service in the USA, which allows minors aged 13 to 17 to travel with a VTC driver if their parents agree. Some observers see this initiative as a risky, even inappropriate bet, but Dara Khosrowshahi defends this decision by advocating the safety of adolescents. This new service is accompanied by several features: the possibility for parents to follow the route live or to record car audio, for example.
The CEO. also spoke about his vision for the development of autonomous taxis. He seems to remain cautious and considers that this is not part of Uber’s projects for the moment, at least not before 10 or 20 years. This kind of taxi could well become a reality for society, but Dara Khosrowshahi underlined the scale of the challenge it represents. Widespread adoption involves immense technical, regulatory and social challenges to overcome. His speech suggests that this is not the company’s priority at the moment.
Dara Khosrowshahi remained rather clear on Uber’s overall strategy and its priorities: the financial security of the company, that of its users and the accountability of the company in the face of the innovations that are looming on the horizon.
Sources: Wired
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