Editor's Note: Travis Kalanick left Uber on June 21, 2017. That's how he turned it into a multi-billion dollar company.
"What if we could just push a button and a car would come?"
—Washingtonian, January 2012
Travis Kalanick didn't initially want to be CEO of Uber.
When the company launched as UberCab in May 2010, he hesitated to step into the fray—not out of fear, but reluctance to commit fully. Having endured two grueling startups in nine years, the limo-service pitch from friend Garrett Camp didn't excite him. "I don't want to run a limo business," he thought.
© SIMONE PEROLAR / LUZ / REDUX
Still, he invested and, with Camp's approval, recruited Ryan Graves, a former GE Healthcare database administrator, as the first CEO. Kalanick contributed 15-20 hours weekly as co-founder and "chief incubator," shaping strategy.
"We both thought the business was going to be pretty low tech, mostly operational," Kalanick later wrote in a blog post. "We didn't know much ;)"
Within seven months, his mindset shifted. He assumed command, with Graves as senior VP, aggressively expanding into over 500 cities worldwide despite taxi industry backlash and regulators. Backed by investors like Benchmark Capital, Jeff Bezos, and Google Ventures, Uber reached a $70 billion valuation.
Related: The Uber episode
Uber shared few early details, and Kalanick avoided most press, but his conference talks reveal patterns of fierce determination. A recurring story: At 23, with UCLA friends, he built Scour, a P2P search engine for music, movies, and videos—pre-Napster, admired by co-founder Shawn Fanning.
It drew $4 million from Michael Ovitz and Ron Burkle, but they took 51% control. Popularity enraged entertainment giants; 33 plaintiffs, including MPAA and RIAA, sued for $250 billion in a New York court, seeking $150,000 per infringement. Scour filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
For most, this would deter entrepreneurship forever. Kalanick launched Red Swoosh a month later, repurposing Scour's tech.
On his CEO appointment day, UberCab got a cease-and-desist from San Francisco's transit agency. Kalanick dropped "Cab," ignored it, and pressed on.
"Go against the grain, be resilient, even if everyone thinks you're crazy."
—Startup India, January 2016
From his working-class Northridge, LA roots—father a civil engineer, mother in ad sales—Kalanick was a straight-A coder on Commodore 64. No quarterback glory (John Elway's spot), he ran cross-country, relays, long jump, sold $20,000 in Cutco knives one summer.
At 18, with a classmate's dad, he started SAT prep at New Way Academy (scoring 1580 himself). Chose UCLA over Stanford, dropped out senior year for Scour with Michael Todd and Vince Busam.
A computer engineering major, he handled marketing amid the lawsuit. Post-failure, he slept 14 hours nightly to recover. Settlement: $1 million damages, tech shutdown, quick asset sale.
"Go after the hard stuff. Because that's where you'll create lasting value."
—MIT, Dec. 2015
Kalanick thrives on creative problem-solving, rooted in UCLA engineering. Data-savvy like Rain Man, yet philosophical. Post-Red Swoosh sale (18 months free), he bought a $1 million San Francisco house, dubbing it Jam-Pad for idea sessions, gaming, and chef meals. Guests like Box CEO Aaron Levie crashed there.
Blunt but supportive: Dismissed one idea as "small," yet backed Livefyre's CEO Jordan Kretchmer with intros and cash.
At Uber, as "Chief Solver," his vision elevated it beyond limos to FedEx-scale logistics in 540 cities, sans cars or drivers. Tactics drew criticism, but he frames them mission-driven: "It's about leaning into interesting problems."
"I like trouble where you can fight for what matters."
Related: Think Slow and Other Tips for Better Problem Solving
"Your hardest times are when you learn to be your best."
—CBS This Morning, August 2012
Post-Scour, Red Swoosh was "revenge": Sell peer-networking to suing giants. Ahead of its time, it saved bandwidth like for YouTube. VCs balked post-dot-com crash.
Mark Cuban invested $1 million, then wanted it back. Microsoft lowballed at $1.2 million. Kalanick lived with parents, worked unpaid four years, faced $110,000 IRS tax debt splitting him and Todd (who joined Google).
Engineers unpaid months; $300,000 family investment; Thailand regroup. Akamai bought for $23 million.
"Fear is the disease. Hustle is the antidote."
—Startup Mixology Conference, October 2010
His confidence fends off lawyers, regulators. Engineering + champion mindset: "Put everything on the court, get back up—impossible to fail."
Related: 3 Emotions All Entrepreneurs Feel (And How To Keep Them Under Control)
Chris Sacca: Doesn't sleep, eat, focus laser-like—even beat Sacca's dad at Wii left-handed.
Interviews 30-50 hours for execs from GE, Target, Google, Obama campaign. Late meetings common. Phone master—even carpet burns during deals.
Raised: $1.25M (2010), $48M (2011), $258M (2013), $2.6B (2014), $3.7B (2015), $4.8B (2016 incl. $3.5B Saudi).
Paces meetings, 40 miles on HQ treadmill. Post-Red Swoosh, near-breakdown; year recharging. Father advised: "Don't work too long or hard."
"You can either do what they say or fight for what you believe."
—Vanity Fair, November 2014
Calm publicly, he transformed Camp's elite car service into global disruption. From "ballers" to job creation, emissions cuts, car-free cities.
DAVID PAUL MORRIS/BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES
Taxi lobbies resist; Kalanick's 2013 white paper promised safer rides, $1M coverage, vetted drivers. Uses social, ads, celebs, petitions. Fought 70+ lawsuits; war chest covered.
"We are running a political campaign and the candidate is Uber."
—Vanity Fair, November 2014
2014 playbook: Daily city launches; creative promos like ice cream, kittens, charity rides. Scandals: Fake Lyft rides, mercenaries, God View misuse, driver protests (20% cut, no tips).
Surge pricing backlash (NYE, crises). Hired Obama strategist David Plouffe; vet programs, Amber Alerts, Krueger study on MSNBC.
MARLENE AWAAD / BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES
No longer underdog (160 lobbyists), arms with facts. TED Talk: Tech + regulation for carshares, reclaim cities.
"Once you can deliver cars in five minutes, you can deliver a lot in five minutes."
—Dreamforce Conference, September 2015
Innovator's playground: Perception vs. reality (cars idle 96%). UberEATS, UberRUSH, helicopters. Self-driving: Pittsburgh center poached CMU talent; bought Otto ($680M), Geometric Intelligence. Google conflict.
SF self-driving Volvos launched; red-light video led to DMV halt sans permit. Uber persisted, then moved to Arizona after registration yank. China: Merged with Didi for $1B stake, 17.7%, after $200M/mo losses.
Has Kalanick softened? Time will tell—he's always ahead.
Related: I Drove for Uber to See How Strangers Can Impact My Life
This article originally appeared in the March 2017 issue of SUCCESS magazine.
