Uber CEO/Founder Travis Kalanick Has Resigned

Embattled San Francisco-based ride-hailing startup Uber which has been rocked by an unrelenting series of scandals (ranging from sexual harassment, intellectual property theft and traffic law evasion) and staff departures since the start of 2017 has finally claimed its CEO. According to a just published report by The New York Times, "Travis Kalanick stepped down Tuesday as chief executive of Uber, the ride-hailing service that he helped found in 2009 and that he built into a transportation colossus, after a shareholder revolt made it untenable for him to stay on at the company." The latest news comes a week after Kalanick's announcement that he would be taking an indefinite leave of absence, adding "the ultimate responsibility, for where we've gotten and how we've gotten here rests on my shoulders."

Earlier on Tuesday, five of Uber’s major investors demanded that the chief executive resign immediately. The investors included one of Uber’s biggest shareholders, the venture capital firm Benchmark, which has one of its partners, Bill Gurley, on Uber’s board. The investors made their demand for Mr. Kalanick to step down in a letter delivered to the chief executive while he was in Chicago, said the people with knowledge of the situation. 

In the letter, titled “Moving Uber Forward” and obtained by The New York Times, the investors wrote to Mr. Kalanick that he must immediately leave and that the company needed a change in leadership. Mr. Kalanick, 40, consulted with at least one Uber board member and after long discussions with some of the investors, he agreed to step down. He will remain on Uber’s board of directors.

Follow the entire story here: Why Uber Will Survive