Uber Appoints Expedia's Dara Khosrowshahi As Its New CEO

Uber's board of directors on Sunday selected Expedia's Dara Khosrowshahi as the company's new CEO, according a person familiar with the decision. Khosrowshahi, a surprise candidate, will replace former CEO and co-founder Travis Kalanick, who resigned more than two months ago amid a series of scandals and controversies that have rocked the ride-hailing company for much of this year.

Uber declined to comment. Earlier, a spokesperson for Uber's board said the company wanted to inform employees of its decision before publicly announcing the name of the new CEO.

Khosrowshahi, who is 48, has led Expedia since 2005, through a period of rapid expansion. An Iranian-American, Khosrowshahi is a graduate of Brown University who previously worked at IAC and Allen & Company. Earlier this year, he gained notoriety for his strong condemnation of Donald Trump. 

The board selected Khosrowshahi (see full profile here) after a weekend of twists and turns in the convoluted plot that the Uber CEO search had become. 

Earlier on Sunday, the leading candidate, former GE CEO Jeff Immelt, announced on Twitter that he “decided not to pursue a leadership position at Uber.” Immelt added: "I have immense respect for the company & founders - Travis, Garrett and Ryan." (Those are the first names of Kalanick, Garrett Camp and Ryan Graves.)

In his stead, Meg Whitman, the CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise and an early favorite of various board members, who said earlier this month that she did not want the job, was said to have re-emerged as a leading contender for the position.

Published reports suggest Immelt didn't have the votes necessary to secure his position and that he had become increasingly worried about infighting on the board. Two factions, one led by Kalanick, and one led by early investor Benchmark, are battling in court over control of the company. Whitman, a favorite of Benchmark, met with the board over the weekend, according to reports.

Ultimately, it was Khosrowshahi who got the nod. 

Khosrowshahi could bring much needed stability to a company that has been in turmoil for much of this year. He faces enormous challenges. While Uber's business continues to grow at a brisk pace, it continues to lose hundreds of millions of dollars each quarter. The company has also lost several top executives in recent months, including its chief financial and chief operating officers, and faces a critical legal challenge from Google spin-off Waymo, which accused Uber of stealing its intellectual property.

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