Uber CEO Travis Kalanick has resigned following a string of controversies that attracted media and regulatory scrutiny to the company he helped found. Bloomberg reports Kalanick’s departure is effective immediately, though he’ll continue to serve on the board of directors.
Kalanick had taken a leave of absence to mourn the passing of his mother, who died in a boating accident just weeks ago, but was asked by five major investors to step down. One of those investors included Benchmark Capital, who wrote a letter demanding his immediate resignation, according to the New York Times. After consulting with at least one Uber board member and holding discussions with the investors, Kalanick agreed to resign.
“I love Uber more than anything in the world and at this difficult moment in my personal life I have accepted the investors request to step aside so that Uber can go back to building rather than be distracted with another fight,” Kalanick said in a statement.
The embattled CEO’s resignation comes on the heels of other major departures, including head of business Emil Michael and President Jeff Jones. It also follows a number of highly publicized scandals at Uber, including a recent probe into allegations of widespread sexual harassment and an investigation into the company’s use of police-evading “Greyball” software. As a result of the sexual harassment probe, more than 20 employees were fired. Uber was also recently sued by Google’s Waymo autonomous car spinoff for allegedly stealing secrets.
Despite its tarnished public image, Uber continues to rake in massive profits. In the first quarter of 2017, revenue increased by $3.4 billion. The company has been valued at $69 billion, far ahead of its chief rival Lyft. Recently, Uber added a feature to its app that finally allows riders to add a tip for their driver.
Until a new CEO is chosen, Uber will be run by a management committee composed of more than 10 executives.
Source: Bloomberg
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