Uber’s stunning journey to a $90 billion IPO changed transportation forever
Uber's journey from scrappy startup to $90 billion company wasn't long, in the grand scheme of things, but it beat some long odds.
- The company seeks a valuation of up to $91.5 billion, less than a previously rumored $120 billion target but still big enough to make Uber's IPO the largest in the US since Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba debuted in 2014.
- In November 2014, the company's top New York executive used an internal company tool called "God View" to track a reporter's location.
- Uber was blessed by a strategic investment from Baidu, China's leading search engine, but it still faced fierce local competition from taxi apps Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache, which in February 2015 merged into the company that would become Didi Chuxing.
- Both Didi and Grab also counted Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba among their investors; Didi, Go-Jek, and Ola were backed by Tencent Holdings; even Apple put $1 billion behind Didi.
- The deal marked Uber's third major concession to an international competitor, after it sold to Didi in China in 2016 and merged with Yandex.
- Uber generated $14.1 billion in gross bookings in the quarter ended Dec. 31, a figure that includes what customers spend on Uber rides, Uber Eats orders, and other Uber services.