
A profound apology - _pius
https://newsroom.uber.com/a-profound-apology/
======
dongslol
Here's the conversation that took place:

    
    
      Travis: So we are reducing the number of black cars in the next few months.
      Fawzi: It’s good.
      Travis: You probably saw some email.
      Fawzi: I saw the email [that says] it starts in May. But you’re raising the standards and dropping the prices.
      Travis: We’re not dropping the prices on Black.
      Fawzi: But in general.
      Travis: In general, but we have competitors. Otherwise we’d be out of business.
      Fawzi: Competitors? You had the business model in your hands, you could have the prices you want but you choose to buy everybody a ride.
      Travis: No, no no. You misunderstand me. We started high-end. We didn’t go low-end because we wanted to. We went low-end because we had to because we’d be out of business.
      Fawzi: But people are not trusting you anymore. Do you think people will buy cars anymore? ... I lost $97,000 because of you. I'm bankrupt because of you.  You keep changing every day. You keep changing every day.
      Travis: Hold on a second. What have I changed about Black?
      Fawzi: You changed the whole business! You dropped the prices.
      Travis: On Black? Bullshit.
      Fawzi: We started with $20.
      Travis: You know what, some people don't like to take responsibility for their own shit. They blame everything in their life on somebody else. Good luck!
      Fawzi: Good luck to you too, I know that you aren’t going to go far.

~~~
dongslol
Personally, I didn't find this disproportionately disrespectful. The driver
makes a couple unsubstantiated claims (perfectly ok--it's a car discussion).
Travis does the same. The driver starts making accusations ("you keep changing
every day"). Travis asks for clarification. The driver keeps up his attack
("You changed the whole business! You dropped the prices.")

If someone accused me in such a fashion, and persisted despite me asking for
clarification and trying to actually explain my view to them, I'd probably be
a lot more vitriolic than Travis was. (It's a character flaw of mine.) And
saying that some people don't like to take responsibility for their own shit
is, well, true?

I don't like that billionaires are held to a different standard. People say,
"they don't need protection; they're rich." Ok, but if you discount something
a billionaire says for no reason other than that they're rich and have easy
lives, you're not a dispassionate truthseeker.

~~~
btian
From the Bloomberg article - > In 2012, Uber Black cost riders $4.90 per mile
or $1.25 per minute in San Francisco, according to an old version of Uber's
website. Today, Uber charges $3.75 per mile and $0.65 per minute.

The least a CEO could have said is to thank the driver for his feedback and
promise to look into it.

Just because you're disrespectful doesn't mean the CEO of a consumer facing
company can treat its partners like that.

~~~
dongslol
I spent the last half hour thinking about this on and off, trying to shift my
perspective. I feel sort of guilty. Advocating for objectivity and
dispassionate truthseeking is the second easiest way to curry favor on HN, and
it feels cheap. (The easiest is still outrage, never to be topped anywhere :))

If anything, I find it sort of funny that Travis got mad. He handled it pretty
well at first; they were just having an honest disagreement. Then it was like
he just decided, "fuck it, I've had a bad day, and I don't need to take this
guy's shit." He might meditate on the fact that this guy spends his evenings
being the reason that Uber's business model works.

~~~
randycupertino
The whole thing reminds me of when Tommy Carcetti becoming mayor scene from
the Wire. The old outgoing mayor is giving him some advice and he basically
explains that when you're mayor you have to smile and eat shit from everybody-
the unions, the lobbyists, the press, the teachers, the churches... and smile
and act gracious while you're doing it.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjzqO6UOPFQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjzqO6UOPFQ)

Travis should have just smiled and eaten this guys shit, because that's just
part of being CEO. "Thank you for your feedback, we'll look into it. Keep up
the good work and thanks for the ride!"

~~~
Hydraulix989
Even then, at some point, you're off stage so to speak when it comes to
managing that "impression" for others. You can't always be fake all the time,
it gets draining.

~~~
geofft
Eh, I think that just means the role of the CEO is not one you're cut out for.
I know people who spend their entire workday and their entire work-related
interactions outside of the workday being fake, because that's what they need
to do to succeed at their job. They come out of it completely exhausted, and
they have friends they can recharge with, privately. But if they get an urgent
email or IM on the weekend, it's back to being fake. And they're not even CEO-
level.

It's a job skill. The job of CEO requires a lot of skills, almost none of
which are the ability to come up with and execute on a great initial idea.

------
jamestimmins
I'm a bit unclear what is so negative about this. While there is an argument
that a leader should be able to handle criticism without losing his/her
temper, he appears to respond to the driver as an equal with whom he
profoundly disagrees. He didn't write the man off or act as though he wasn't
worth his time, he simply responded in a frustrated manner to an interaction
that he clearly was not in the mood for.

Does being brusque require a public apology?

~~~
smcmurtry
>Kalanick: You know what?

>Kamel: What?

>Kalanick: Some people don't like to take responsibility for their own shit.
They blame everything in their life on somebody else.

I think that is a very insulting and superior thing to say to someone.

~~~
argonaut
Something that struck me is: almost half of the country would disagree with
you (the more conservative half). A lot of the American public believes what
Kalanick said to be very true when it comes to low-ish income people
complaining about what wealthier people do to them.

~~~
gingerbread-man
In my experience, it isn't the wealthy who think the poor are
lazy/irresponsible-- it's the working poor and the lower middle class. The
"more conservative half" of the country isn't particularly the wealthier half
of the country. Speculating as to why that is would probably overflow this
comments section.

~~~
lazyasciiart
I know a lot of well off programmers who absolutely believe that the only
reason anyone isn't a well off programmer is laziness and poor character.
Don't know how you're making your class divisions, but I certainly wouldn't
call them lower middle class or below.

~~~
gingerbread-man
Many lower-middle-class Americans look down on the poor because they see
themselves on equal footing, and believe that "If I can work two jobs and make
ends meet, so could s/he if s/he had the work ethic."

The most arrogant programmers I know seem to think the exact opposite: that
they are among the elite few graced with the gift of true programming
intuition. (Not true.) They don't think the poor are lazy, they think the poor
are helpless and un-talented.

~~~
frgtpsswrdlame
Sure, but those are just two different ways to achieving the same goal: a
feeling of superiority.

------
smdz
> By now I’m sure you’ve seen the video where I treated an Uber driver
> disrespectfully. To say that I am ashamed is an extreme understatement. My
> job as your leader is to lead…and that starts with behaving in a way that
> makes us all proud. That is not what I did, and it cannot be explained away.
> > It’s clear this video is a reflection of me—and the criticism we’ve
> received is a stark reminder that I must fundamentally change as a leader
> and grow up....

I watched the video 3 times, and did not find anything wrong with the CEO's
behavior. And don't understand why the CEO should be issuing any apology at
all for this video.

He was explaining the situation politely. Its when the driver started placing
his $97K bankruptcy charge on the CEO - the CEO lost his cool.

If the CEO is contemplating changing this polite no-nonsense behavior
-investors should be very concerned

EDIT: I came across this interesting comment from _gpawl_ , somewhere down
this thread

>>> It's a good tactic -- blow off all the worse things you do, then apologize
for the one time you weren't at fault, people notice and give you sympathy,
and start to forget those worse things.

~~~
tptacek
You copied this comment from another thread, where I responded:

Uber isn't the driver's employer. Uber is a vendor to the driver. The driver
is complaining that its vendor made commitments, on which the driver depended,
and then reneged. The driver might be right or might be wrong, but in no
discussion with a vendor in the history of the Fortune 500 has it ever been OK
for the vendor to accuse their customer of "not taking responsibility for
their own shit".

What the video shows isn't wrong on the level of the Fowler post. It just
shows Kalanick as petty and deeply unserious about his role, which is an
alarming look for someone whose company is embroiled in scandals about
mismanagement.

~~~
smdz
Yes, that thread was marked duplicate.

At least with this instance, it did not seem like the Kalanick's fault (nor
the driver's fault). The driver got a bit aggressive and we know why.

I don't agree with the statement: "Uber is a vendor to the driver".

This is theoretically true, but doesn't work that way in practice. Uber is
like a freelance marketplace for drivers. In practice I have never seen
individual or handful of freelancers having any power over monopolistic
marketplace authorities. Nobody stopped the driver from working with Uber -
but he can't! Uber is a vendor for the riders only.

~~~
fragmede
The $97k, and the reason the driver is bankrupt has a _ton_ to do with Travis'
actions as CEO of Uber, and is where Uber becomes, in a non-traditional sense,
the vendor to the driver.

Uber behaved as the vendor for a $97k auto loan, in so far as Uber is the one
with the big name that worked with car dealers and loan companies to get into
the subprime auto loan business because that's what a bunch of stand up guys
Uber is, and 2008 was _years_ ago.

It was only with Uber's help, that the loan company came to the table so that
driver could sign a contract to finance a $97k car. An expensive car, to be
sure, but you're not allowed to drive for Uber Black in a Toyota Corolla from
1990, so you actually need a stupidly expensive car to drive for Uber Black.
Unfortunately, financing on that expensive a car leaves the driver in a $5k
hole every month for car payment. Not too bad, but if a driver can make
$8k/month; $10k with extra work and some luck, that's not a bad deal.

Travis' and Uber then pulled the rug out from under drivers after they'd
signed the loan. Drivers could no longer limit themselves to driving Uber
Black. Uber, as a platform, forced them to accept UberX rides, or risk being
permanently banned. UberX rides aren't as lucrative for the driver which
really cuts into amount earned per month. Then Uber also lowered rates for
Uber Black rides, making it cheaper for passengers, but, again, cutting into
drivers' wage.

Suddenly, the drivers were beholden to a car loan and driving for Uber wasn't
making enough money to stay afloat. This is how the driver got into that $97k
hole.

In the video, Travis' and thus ultimately Uber's defense is that the driver
being in this hole is in _no_ way Uber's fault, which is a crock of shit.

Saying "the driver knew what they were getting into, and they signed a
contract" does makes it legal, but when that's what they have to fall back on,
Uber might be run by a bunch of assholes, starting from the top.

~~~
nunez
Holy shit. That explains why I took a S550 the other day despite it being an
UberX ride. This would have been avoided if Uber had never got into the auto
loan business.

This is gross. I'm glad to have deleted my account and go full Lyft.

~~~
brian_cloutier
Not so fast! Lyft has done something rather similar:
[http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Lyft-Plus-changes-
ups...](http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Lyft-Plus-changes-upset-some-
drivers-5768364.php)

~~~
nunez
The biggest difference is that Lyft didn't create a car lending program and
dupe people into thinking that their $5k/month Escalade would ALWAYS yield
$10k/mo profits.

Lyft cars are wholly owned by their drivers

------
ddispaltro
Honestly, most of the conversation is a lot more genuine than most
interactions as seen on the internet. Most execs would have shut up and
avoided any discussion. I am not saying that I agree with everything, but of
all the Uber news, this is the least worrying.

~~~
orblivion
I'm rarely one to defend Uber, but I agree. I didn't see the big deal. He was
a little rude, callous, and aloof. Not great, but meh.

~~~
k-mcgrady
>> He was a little rude, callous, and aloof.

This is the big deal. It's solidifying the picture that's been built of him
over the last few weeks.

------
meowface
This doesn't excuse the way he talked to the driver either way, but who was
factually correct in the conversation?

[http://www.recode.net/2017/2/28/14766964/video-uber-
travis-k...](http://www.recode.net/2017/2/28/14766964/video-uber-travis-
kalanick-driver-argument)

>Kamel: “But people are not trusting you anymore. Do you think people will buy
cars anymore? ... I lost $97,000 because of you. I'm bankrupt because of you.
You keep changing every day. You keep changing every day.”

>Kalanick: “Hold on a second. What have I changed about Black?”

>Kamel: “You changed the whole business! You dropped the prices.”

>Kalanick: “On Black? Bullshit.”

>Kamel: “We started with $20.”

~~~
huac
The Bloomberg article notes the decreased rates:

> In 2012, Uber Black cost riders $4.90 per mile or $1.25 per minute in San
> Francisco, according to an old version of Uber's website. Today, Uber
> charges $3.75 per mile and $0.65 per minute.

~~~
comex
That's a good data point, but not perfect, since the amount Uber charges
customers isn't necessarily directly correlated with the amount they pay
drivers...

~~~
mhluongo
I thought Uber took a standard %?

~~~
dopamean
They do. However I believe compensation to drivers is more complicated because
of what are essentially marketing costs in the form of subsidized rides. A
year or so ago before Uber left Austin a driver told me one weekend that Uber
guaranteed him something like $400 to drive for the weekend so long as he
picked up 30 fares (I'm fudging the numbers a bit here because I cant
remember). Based on promotions being run for customers and increased rates
Uber was definitely going to have to come out of their own pocket to meet that
guarantee.

~~~
spike021
Are you sure that $400 amount wasn't just credits for using the app rather
than actual money?

I've seen both Uber and Lyft advertise that if you become a driver and do X
rides in Y time you'll get Z credits to use as a rider.

~~~
HappyTypist
No, uber offers heavy incentives to drivers.

When I drove a few years ago, easily half of my income came from subsidies and
guarantees.

------
sjtgraham
The driver covertly filmed a passenger during a ride he was being paid for and
disclosed the footage to a news organisation. This is extremely unethical IMO.
Even if this is the CEO of Uber, it is entirely inappropriate, and he IMO is
still entitled to an expectation of privacy equally as you or I would when we
are paying for the exclusive private hire of a vehicle.

~~~
mrbabbage
Every taxicab I have been in for the last few years has had internal video
cameras. Where are you getting the idea that someone has a reasonable
expectation of privacy in someone else's vehicle, for hire or not? In general
in America, this expectation extends no further than one's home.

~~~
sjtgraham
I live in the UK and the place is covered by CCTV including private hire
vehicles, but we also have the Data Protection Act, which makes this kind of
thing illegal. I know if I am being filmed in a taxi because there must a
notice prominently displayed, and I also know that the only way this footage
will ever be used, is if I attack the driver and it is used as criminal
evidence against me, or if make a complaint about a driver and he uses it to
bolster his case with Transport for London.

------
unityByFreedom
> This is the first time I’ve been willing to admit that I need leadership
> help and I intend to get it.

That's bold. I can't remember hearing any recent CEO saying this.

Best of luck to Uber and their CEO.

~~~
ethbro
That's because normally the CEO is fired after presiding over a fuckup of this
magnitude. (The rampant racism and sexism, not just this latest)

~~~
unityByFreedom
If social media wants his head, I'm sure they can get it.

I think it's bad for tech and the country when we don't support people who say
they made a mistake and are seeking help. If you do that, you only end up with
really good liars in charge.

Allow someone, somewhere, to admit a mistake and correct it in a leadership
position.

~~~
linuxkerneldev
> we don't support people who say they made a mistake and are seeking help.

> you only end up with really good liars in charge.

There's a difference between someone realizing they've made a mistake and
openly admitting it without needing external pressure / evidence versus
someone just "handling" more evidence of wrong-doing coming up.

In this case, at a cursory glance, it looks more like someone was accused of a
negative type of behavior, the person never acknowledged it or resolved it for
a long period, then suddenly a series of events followed by video evidence
came-up, only then the person acknowledges it and issues an apology and
demands/expects to be forgiven. If that's what's happened in this case, then
I'm not sure that forgiving them / supporting their subsequent activities is
safe since it would be more like enablement, ie: just enabling the person to
continue.

If on the other hand, the perpetrator acknowledged not just this specific
issue that had video evidence, but also acknowledged other issues/faults and
gave a plan of action for how they were changing their behavior (more than I'm
getting help now), then it would be something positive.

~~~
unityByFreedom
> There's a difference between someone realizing they've made a mistake and
> openly admitting it without needing external pressure / evidence versus
> someone just "handling" more evidence of wrong-doing coming up.

I agree there's a difference, I just don't see the value in calling for his
head. There's nothing else to expect of him. He clearly wants to stay and keep
trying. It's the board's job to decide if he's fit to remain as CEO.

> it looks more like someone was accused of a negative type of behavior, the
> person never acknowledged it or resolved it for a long period, then suddenly
> a series of events followed by video evidence came-up, only then the person
> acknowledges it and issues an apology and demands/expects to be forgiven

I don't see him expecting anything more from anyone but himself. You may infer
that, but it's not written there.

I think his message is simple. He wants to remain as CEO and is willing to
take steps to improve his leadership style to do so. You may feel those are
empty words. To me, they're meaningful because I've read stories of companies
that have been transformed by CEOs who become aware how their faults effect
the company. It's possible he is not being sincere, but, I don't see much
value in wishing for his demise. An in-company replacement would likely keep
the same culture going, and an outside replacement isn't reliable in the tech
world. As John Sculley showed, that's risky.

> If on the other hand, the perpetrator acknowledged not just this specific
> issue that had video evidence, but also acknowledged other issues/faults and
> gave a plan of action for how they were changing their behavior (more than
> I'm getting help now), then it would be something positive.

Given the shortness of this apology, I'd guess he isn't quite sure what his
other faults are, and is seeking help to identify them.

------
oconnore
It takes a certain kind of person to declare that their own apology is
"profound".

~~~
stouset
Profound has two meanings. You're confusing one meaning ("having great
knowledge or insight") with the other ("very great or intense").

"He has profound insights on the topic of healthcare" vs. "Please accept my
profound sorrow for your loss".

~~~
oconnore
No. The profound in "please accept my sorrow" is a comment on the depth of
your sorrow, something that you are uniquely equipped to describe. "A profound
apology follows:" is a comment on how I expect my reader to interpret this
message, something I am not at all equipped to describe.

~~~
stouset
And the "profound" in "please accept my profound apology" can't likewise be a
comment on the depth and sincerity of the apology, a trait the issuer is
similarly uniquely equipped to describe?

Come on. I get all the backlash against Uber — the outrage they're
experiencing is rightly deserved — but this is truly asinine.

~~~
oconnore
I still think my initial reaction was reasonable, albeit subjective. But ya,
we can stop debating semantics now.

~~~
rdiddly
FWIW I thought the same thing. It's an artless word choice by someone without
enough experience of real life.

------
siliconc0w
Here is the video for the curious:
[https://youtu.be/gTEDYCkNqns?t=237](https://youtu.be/gTEDYCkNqns?t=237)

To his credit he did actually try to engage with the upset driver - most other
executives would just dodge the conversation to avoid looking bad.

~~~
exodust
True, and he might have also responded with a safe on-brand reply that would
have been criticized as "corporate disingenuous".

Give me the genuine emotional reply any day, that's where you find truth,
strengths, weaknesses out in the open.

Whether the business model is unfair on drivers is a separate issue to the
conduct of this encounter. At the end of the day, the driver went too far
saying "I'm bankrupt because of you", I have no sympathy for people who
exaggerate to score points.

------
anjc
It strikes me as a mistake to apologise for something that you shouldn't
apologise for.

I thought the video was humanising, and if anything, he remained cool in the
face of threatening behaviour. Apologising just legitimses the critics, who'll
remain critical regardless.

~~~
subpixel
For me the video humanizes Uber drivers - the people who have the most to lose
when Uber brass damage the company through scandal and mismanagement. The fact
that Kalanick dismisses the driver's opinions on what might be good for the
company reveals the fragility of his ego. If he'd listen to the opinions of
the people who actual make Uber work, he might learn a lot.

~~~
jacobtracey
The drivers are just a stopgap until most Uber rides are self driving cars.

They're all screwed in the end anyway.

~~~
AstralStorm
The problem is, Uber will be gone too, unless they will provide a valet
service or become a brand for one of the big car companies.

------
remarkEon
I would like to hear an argument for why Travis should remain as CEO.

In my mind there's simply been too many colossal failures as a leader, and
while I don't consider this video in particular to be resignation worthy, I
feel like it's just another datapoint in a growing dataset showing that he's
not mature enough (at 40 no less) to handle his role. A straw that broke the
camel's back, so to speak. This letter _seems_ sincere, but I was fairly
disappointed that there have been no high-level firings or resignations (that
I'm aware of) since the Fowler story broke. There's a deep credibility issue
here, and the only way I can think of to fix it is if he leaves.

So why should he stay?

Edit: I'm wrong, Amit Singhal was asked to resign due to not disclosing an
alleged sexual harassment offense at Google.

[https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/27/technology/uber-sexual-
ha...](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/27/technology/uber-sexual-harassment-
amit-singhal-resign.html?_r=0)

FTA: A little more than a week after Uber faced stinging accusations that it
had ignored female employees’ complaints of sexual harassment, the company
dismissed the head of its engineering efforts for failing to disclose a sexual
harassment claim from his previous job.

~~~
crimsonalucard
Being an ass hole is sometimes an effective form of leadership. This event may
be a datapoint FOR keeping him as a leader.

Steve Jobs was an ass hole.

~~~
chasing
Don't confuse someone being successful _because_ they're an asshole with
someone being successful _despite_ being an asshole.

~~~
crimsonalucard
Part of Steve Jobs success was attributed to the fact that he was an asshole
not despite of it. Read his biography.

~~~
chasing
I've read two Steve Jobs biographies.

Don't confuse Steve Jobs being successful _because_ he's an asshole with Steve
Jobs being successful _despite_ being an asshole.

~~~
crimsonalucard
Steve jobs success is attributed to MANY things, part of his success is
attributed to his personality for which he is known to be an asshole. If you
read two biographies, you'd know.

~~~
chasing
> Being an ass hole is sometimes an effective form of leadership. This event
> may be a datapoint FOR keeping him as a leader.

"Being an asshole doesn't make you Steve Jobs." \- Steve Jobs

Anyway, I'd suggest you consider what kind of leader you'd be willing to
follow and then work backwards to define your concept of what good leadership
may or may not be.

Steve Jobs may have existed in a very special circumstance that allowed him
certain, um, behavioral privileges. That does _not_ necessarily make every
aspect of his character worth modeling.

~~~
crimsonalucard
Never said every aspect was worth modeling. I specifically used the term
"effective leader." An effective leader is one who delivers results, not
necessarily one that is admired.

An effective leader knows when to sacrifice pawns.

------
m3kw9
I saw th video and it wasn't that disrepectful if you were a normal person,
but since he is the CEO of some mega corp, any slight temperament in a bad way
will get you this PR

------
marcell
From the post:

    
    
        > It’s clear this video is a reflection of me—and  
        > the criticism we’ve received is a stark reminder that  
        > I must fundamentally change as a leader and grow up.  
        > This is the first time I’ve been willing to admit that  
        > I need leadership help and I intend to get it.
    

I'm no fan of Uber, these past few months lowered my opinion of them, and
words are just words, but even still: this is a very unequivocal statement,
and very difficult for someone to make so publicly, in the lime light. A good
step, I think.

And, for what it's worth, the video conversation doesn't seem to bad. I think
Travis has more on his mind than just the recent video, but it's safer to pin
it on that one thing.

~~~
acjohnson55
How difficult is it, really, when billions of your own dollars are on the
line? We sure do have a tendency to infantilize the infinitely privileged.

Showing up to excel at a job where you have to navigate a minefield of sexual
misconduct, hostile management and complicit HR is difficult.

For Travis, stepping aside to let a new leader build the culture of respect
and accountability that he has abysmally failed to foster would actually be
difficult.

------
DannyBee
The problem for Travis is now everyone will still believe this is just a
reaction to getting bad press, because historically, they have just done that
:)

------
aioprisan
Care to venture a guess that he wouldn't have apologized if the video wasn't
made public? Much like the recent sexually abusive culture revelations. Travis
continues to do the least he can actually do without doing anything that would
actually hurt himself, as resigning and putting a true and tried professional
CEO in charge would - and let's be clear, he just made it clear that he never
intends on stepping down.

------
hackuser
Kalanick is also a leader in many communities: in Silicon Valley, in the
business community, in the U.S., and worldwide.

Many respond to such issues with more bluster, with defensiveness, with
pressure on the weaker party (who then retracts their claims, blames
themselves, forgives the powerful person, etc.), with claims that such
behavior is appropriate. Unfortunately this behavior is now seen in world
leaders.

I think his note is responsible and appropriate. It's good to see.

(I'm no Uber fan; I don't use them due to their treatment of their drivers,
and their disrespect for and undermining of local legal authority.)

------
git-pull
Here's the video:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTEDYCkNqns](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTEDYCkNqns)

------
diebir
I did not find this video problematic at all. If anything, I am impressed that
Kalanick went for a conversation with the driver and on the same level. This
could be a cultural difference, but I perceived the driver tone as aggressive
and bullying, when Kalanick was eager but civil. I think Kalanick handled the
confrontation (which is what this was) pretty well. This fits his style and my
perception of him and while he may not be a person I would want to hang out
with, this is why Uber is successful with Kalanick as a CEO.

------
chx
You need to directly link to this because this apology does not actually show
up on [https://newsroom.uber.com/](https://newsroom.uber.com/) .
[http://i.imgur.com/9fiFNJx.png](http://i.imgur.com/9fiFNJx.png)

~~~
lloydde
Strange! I was perplexed that the apology is followed by a multi-racial image
of gym rats, but then saw it was part of a "featured article" on Uber
delivered influenza vaccine from last year.

------
everdev
Wow, from the title I thought this would be in regards to the multiple claims
of sexual harassment and a hostile workplace. Have they acknowledged those
situations yet?

With this video, he got triggered and left. I'm sure he's sorry but I don't
see this as anywhere remotely close to the experiences several female
engineers have shared. Hopefully his response to them is magnitudes more
heartfelt, apologetic and transformative.

------
pizza
It's almost as if many of Uber's problems stem from mistreatment of lower-
level employees.. not only on the corporate side, but also by customers
against drivers.

------
rexreed
At this point who can have empathy for the management of this company? This
overvalued, overinvested company.

------
victorhooi
I fail to see the issue here.

If anything, this whole thing makes me respect Kalanick and Uber more.

I watched the video of the driver ambushing Kalanick - and yes, it was clearly
an ambush:

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTEDYCkNqns](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTEDYCkNqns)

If anything, he handled himself quite well - especially considering he
probably just wanted to go home.

Can any of you say you would have handled a tense situation, with somebody
abusing you any better?

It's all well and good to sit in your chair at home, comfortable - but how
many of you had to deal with

The fact that he took the time to actually talk with the driver says
something. At worst, he said b*llshit at the end, when he's clearly frustrated
at what's becoming a rant. The driver obviously just needed to vent.

------
k-mcgrady
Reading the conversation they had in the thread here it seemed 50/50 to me.
Watching the video completely changed my mind so if you're ITT and making a
judgement based on a transcript take a look at the video. The driver is pretty
calm and then seems to touch a nerve with Kalanick who gets loud and rude.
Also as they're talking over each the transcripts here aren't accurate. The
driver is actually quoting figures, not just complaining without evidence.

I wish Lyft would expand out of the US. If they did, they'd have my business
immediately. As for Uber, with everything over the last few weeks they've lost
it.

------
madeofpalk
Can someone link to the video? This is all news to me...

~~~
bobsky
On front page earlier, with couple hundred comments:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13757628](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13757628)

Direct link: [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-28/in-
video-...](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-28/in-video-uber-
ceo-argues-with-driver-over-falling-fares)

~~~
fenomas
Seems to have gotten flagged off the front page fairly quickly.

(Actually a lot of stuff seems to do that lately - I find myself doing a daily
check of the second page, just to see which big stories got flagged down
before I saw them.)

------
crawfordcomeaux
What's missing from this apology is any statement about what, specifically,
he's going to do to change.

If you're reading this, Travis, here are some ideas:

\- Overhaul transparency at Uber because you don't know how to monitor your
culture & doing so takes longer to learn than letting in some light

\- Mindfulness meditation (lots of it)

\- Become an Uber driver for a month and only live off what you make driving.
Do the Undercover Boss thing.

\- Brain programming (shameless plug: I invented methods for doing this & they
double as mindfulness practices)

------
middleclick
Don't we remember this?

[http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/uber-executive-reportedly-
ad...](http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/uber-executive-reportedly-advocated-
smearing-some-journalists-1.2838674)

> A senior executive at U.S. ride-sharing company Uber suggested that the
> company should spend a million dollars to hire a team of opposition
> researchers to "dig up dirt" on its critics in the media, BuzzFeed reported.

------
otterley
I suspect Uber's board was threatening to fire him. A person like Kalanick
makes no apologies unless forced to do so by people even more powerful than
him.

------
M_Grey
Nothing like a mea culpa dragged from you by the threat of impending lawsuits
and a truly vicious turn of public opinion. I'm sure that he's utterly
sincere, and this is in no way just an empty reaction to external and internal
pressures.

Seriously.

Right?

~~~
dokein
I certainly do not intend to take Travis' side on anything, but sometimes
genuine internal realizations are set off by external events (e.g. Spiderman
and his Uncle getting shot, or in more seriousness, any number of reformed ex-
cons). The problem is that it is largely impossible for an external observer
to differentiate genuine internal realization and competency at public
relations.

~~~
throwanem
> ...it is largely impossible for an external observer to differentiate...

Not impossible at all. You do it by observing behavior before and after the
supposed epiphany; time will reveal whether this particular leopard has truly
managed to change his shorts.

It'll be interesting, in particular, to observe how he reacts when people
directly challenge his fitness to discharge his role in ways he can't or won't
ignore. I gather that in the past he's tended to react to such challenges
precipitously and, where possible, punitively. If he's genuinely gained a new
perspective on his behavior and its consequences, I would not expect that to
continue.

~~~
dokein
Very fair. I meant to say that it is hard to tell in this moment, and agree
with your assessment that behavior change over a future time interval
(presumably with longer intervals resulting in better confidence) is a good
test.

------
williamle8300
Uber is a dumpster fire. Whenever I see a black Prius with the Uber sticker on
the car cutting through traffic, tailgating cars, rolling right turns, and
general assery... it reminds me that moral bankruptcy pervades the whole
company culture.

Stay away from this company.

------
dominotw
Uber needs to stop playing this game. They need to be quite and let the
courts/legal system deal with any issues. 99.99% of people don't give a shit
about any of this and people have really really short memory.

Someone is giving them bad PR advice.

------
philip1209
Was there any word on whether Travis banned the driver after that encounter? I
heard from employees that, in the early days, he had to be pried away from
Twitter due to a propensity for perma-banning those who harshly criticized the
company.

~~~
middleclick
Fun fact: according to the article, the driver gave him a 1 star.

------
partycoder
The true character of Kalanick is what you see in that video.

The apology doesn't mean much.

He is giving an impression of accountability when in reality that driver does
not need an apology, he needs a viable business model that allows him to make
a decent living.

------
DavidWanjiru
BS plauditory apology.

You don't get to call something you said "profound." Others can find it
profound, but you can't. It's like a comedian finding themselves funny. It's
normally the audience that finds the comedian funny.

------
alimoeeny
This looks to me as if Uber wants to say we are so sensitive to be fair and
honest that even for such a minor thing CEO publicly apologizes. Imagine what
we do with real problems like sexual harassment in the office.

------
ossie
Putting Travis to the side, nobody cares about the privacy of the two ladies
in the video who have been involuntarily dragged into national news? (i assume
nobody asked their consent to publish the video)

~~~
devopsproject
You give up your privacy when you enter an Uber vehicle.

If the two ladies are upset, they should address the issue with Travis the
next time they hang out.

------
rdtsc
That is a good apology.

We've seen Uber discussed here and not just in context of this incident, but
much worse stuff. It would be interesting to see what comes of that...

But taken it on its own, this is what apologies should be like and not the "I
am so very sorry you all feel this way" type apologies which then usually also
proceed to shift blame (circumstances, others, acts of God, bad mood, etc).

Now whether he actually feels this way or not or this is just good PR I am not
sure. It remains to be seen.

------
cypher303
By "ashamed" I assume he really meant "embarrassed". I'm just glad that I'm
not a well known figure, because I embarrass myself almost daily.

------
kamaal
Please help me understand this.

These Uber drivers disrupted the regular cab/taxi business by driving their
wages low, and now their complain is their wages are going low?

Sorry but that is how capitalism/free market economy in general works.

You won't always be on the positive side of the profit.

~~~
devopsproject
No. "Uber Black" requires a luxury car and uber offers a 3 year lease program
to help drivers purchase a vehicle. People signed up and then uber changed the
rules so that they now have to accept "Uber x" fares too. Uber changed the
rules and drivers are, correctly, pissed.

------
rajacombinator
I ride with Uber drivers who complain to me about their earnings all the time
and I just nod graciously and agree with them. (Even though I couldn't care
less.) Maybe Uber should hire me as CEO, I'll even give them a discount.

------
dmode
The key question is how many people will stop using Uber based on this video.
I for one will still continue using their services. I know Travis is an
asshole and I hate Uber, but I hate cabs even more. And I can't depend just on
Lyft every time

------
reilly3000
Forgive me for not being glued to the news about Uber. What did he say to the
driver?

------
mtarnovan
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTsDqIcpHUc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTsDqIcpHUc)
comes to mind. Words are cheap.

------
realworldview
The horse left that barn a long time ago.

This macho crap pervades the actions, language and demeanour of modern
business and notably technology.

Time to grow up and take responsibility.

------
m-j-fox
Am I the only one who found the first part of the video more interesting?

That guy is full of drugs. No judgement. Just recognizing what drugs looks
like.

~~~
josephpmay
He look's drunk/high, but I wouldn't say he's "full of drugs"

------
gigatexal
At least he's owning up to things. I would hate to be him right now. Companies
have fallen into obscurity for less than this.

------
asher_
Did Uber fire the driver? Or are they ok with passengers being recorded and
those recordings being made public?

------
cnnrjcbsn
Am I the only one who finds his conversation around the 1:45-2:15 mark of the
video to be hilarious?

------
squozzer
Using the label "profound" on your own statement seems a bit self-
aggrandizing.

------
kchoudhu
What low rent CEO of a $70B company goes home in a taxi?

~~~
cnnrjcbsn
My understanding is that this was in an Uber Black. He's using the nicest
version of his product and the one that pays out the most to the drivers.
Sounds about like what I would expect him to do.

------
m0ckingb1rd
I thought this was for female employees at Uber.

------
vacri
s/profound/short/

Also: "I want to apologise" and "I apologise" are subtly but distinctly
different.

------
crorella
So, no stepping down yet?

------
dkarapetyan
Why is he still in charge? The dude is running the company into the ground as
fast as he can.

------
throwaway91111
Just the qualities of a leader that driver needed.

Oh wait, sorry, that would imply some acceptance of responsibility.

~~~
dang
Please don't post snark about inflammatory topics. It's the last thing we need
more of here.

If you have a substantive point to make, please make it thoughtfully. If you
don't, please don't post at all.

We detached this comment from
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13761339](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13761339)
and marked it off-topic.

------
smoyer
The problem with SV's propensity for turning twenty-somethings into CXOs is
that they are fundamentally _NOT_ mature. Studies have shown that our brains
aren't fully mature until we're 25 but it seems to take a long time for the
feeling of entitlement you garner before that age to wear off after you've
reached the quarter-century mark.

I actually do hope he's sincere - I hope he's really going to get help - and I
specifically hope that counseling leads him to eliminate the misogyny that
we've all read about the last couple days. I'm not holding my breath that any
of this will happen. After all, how would it move the valuation forward?
Unfortunately I think that the most likely scenario is that he'll become more
of a detriment to the company and the investors will "ease him out".

~~~
npkarnik
Travis is 40.

~~~
logfromblammo
Maturity comes with experience, not time.

Perhaps the experience of having one of his contractor-chumps call him out on
his worker-hostile corporate policy changes _while working_ will mature him a
bit more.

The rest of us have to make do with mundane stuff like the births of our
children, not making rent/mortgage on the first of the month, having our
water/power/gas shut off, getting laid off, drinking too much tequila,
catching a flat tire at 1 AM during a downpour, losing the championship match,
putting our favorite dog or cat down, burying our parents, getting married,
experiencing a perfect day miles from any stranger out in the wilderness,
finishing the marathon run, getting stopped by the cops for a BS pretext
reason, or writing a horrendously long run-on sentence.

------
owly
Get out while you can! Too little, too late.

