Uber, Uber, Uber. The name seems to be all over the place these days. So what is it all about?
Uber Technologies is an online transportation company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 2009 as "UberCab" by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp who released it as an app the following June and began expanding it internationally at the beginning of 2012.
Uber provides an online transportation network that allows consumers with smartphones to submit a request for a ride, a package or even a 3-course dinner which is then routed to company’s hired drivers who use their own cars to make the trip and complete the order.
The success of the company at making money stems from its founding team that put much thought into how to structure its revenue model for the pre-IPO growth phase of the company and then proceeded to deftly execute that plan. It was created in response to the need by Kalanick and Camp for a much needed approach to hailing a taxi in the rain when none was available. Three things were key in their search for just the right app-- the solution had to be mobile, fast and always accessible.
Tested In NYC with 2 Black Cars
They tested out their service in the city of New York and with just a few black cars and with even fewer people knowing about the startup at the time, it proved to be a hit almost immediately. Soon after, San Francisco joined in to host Uber, and in addition to promoting its unique service to riders, the company started marketing itself as an ideal way for job seekers to jump on board as Uber drivers.
Uber taxis soon picked up speed across the United States and the company began opening offices across Europe, South America and the Middle East. It didn’t taken very long for "Uberification" to become a successful business model, copied by many other companies worldwide and as of May 2016, Uber is available in over 66 countries and 449 cities worldwide and cuts across borders, cultures, and languages.
Uber Successes Across the Middle East
Egypt began offering Uber in 2015 and in the past year, Cairo has become the company’s fastest growing market in the Middle East with 200 times growth in its total business. In Cairo alone, Uber has been adding 3,000 new drivers a month. For comparison, in Brazil, Uber’s second-largest Latin America market, it plans on adding about 4,000 drivers a month over the next year.
“Dialing up” an Uber taxi in UAE’s main cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi began in September 2015, after offering one promotion after another and finally giving away a week worth of Uber free rides or a day of free rides with UberX. Uber cars can also be seen traversing the tangled streets of Tel Aviv.
Uber has been growing in popularity in Saudi Arabia, particularly since the transportation firm introduced a cash option for its drivers. Credit cards are the main method of payments for the Uber taxi service in most markets but the company has now introduced cash as a payment option in certain markets around the world.
And in a surprise announcement made several days ago, this major oil producer is investing $3.5bn in Uber, one of the largest investments in a private technology company ever made by the country. In exchange for the huge check, Yasir Al Rumayya, managing director of the Saudi public investment fund, will join Uber’s board, thereby giving the Saudi government a voice in one of Silicon Valley’s hottest startups. Uber intends to use the money to continue its international expansion in the region and elsewhere.
In a collective news release, the Saudi government and Uber pointed out that the technology startup could help bring some much needed reforms to the country, especially when it comes to women. 80% of its Saudi riders are women and they generally avoid taxis because of the embarrassment that can come from hailing a cab in public. Riyadh is interested in doubling the percentage of women in the workforce by 2030, bringing it up to 30% and Uber hopes its expansion will help the country reach this goal.
Uber is valued today at $62.5bn, more than the market capitalization of FedEx, General Motors and Ford Motor Co each.