CHENNAI: US cab aggregator Uber’s troubles at the helm came to a head on Wednesday, with co-founder and CEO Travis Kalanick resigning after facing pressure to do so from a section of investors.
According to statements released by both Kalanick and Uber’s board, Kalanick’s resignation had to do with “putting Uberfirst”. Kalanick said that he had “accepted a group of investors’ request to step aside so that Uber can go back to building rather than be distracted with another fight”.
Uber’s board, meanwhile, said that Kalanick had always put Uber first. “By stepping away, he’s taking the time to heal from his personal tragedy while giving the company room to fully embrace this new chapter in Uber’s history.”
The development however, follows a leave of absence Kalanick had announced after the company came under pressure following allegations of harassment at the workplace and even mismanagement.
The latest scandal broke when it became known that a top Uber executive had allegedly obtained medical records of a 26-year-old woman raped by an Uber driver in India in 2014 and then shared them with a few Uber officials.