Expedia Chief Dara Khosrowshahi Named As Uber's New CEO

Uber has appointed Expedia boss Dara Khosrowshahi as its new chief executive, The New York Times reports.

It is thought that the ride-hailing company’s board of directors was tossing up between three candidates. The first was Jeffrey Immelt, the former chief executive of General Electric but he is said to have withdrawn his bid after failing to get enough support. The second was Hewlett Packard Enterprise chief Meg Whitman but after she was unable to agree to terms with the board, third candidate Khosrowshahi was awarded the position.

It’s not an overstatement to say that Uber has forever changed the taxi and automotive industries. However, it has been embroiled in scandal for much of the past 12 months and without a chief executive since co-founder Travis Kalanick was forced to step down on June 20.

Khosrowshahi has led Expedia since 2005 and overseen it become one of the largest travel company’s in the world with a $23 billion market capitalization. Compared to the $70 billion value of Uber however, Expedia is a relatively small player.

Neither Uber or Expedia have released statements about Khosrowshahi’s appointment.