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Source：Information Information Network Editor：Entertainment Time：2025-06-26 07:33:35

Uber needs someone else to keep it afloat.

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said in an all-hands meeting on ebonyTuesday that the company needs "a No. 2 executive" or Chief Operating Officer, as reported byRecode's Kara Swisher. The news of Kalanick interested in a search for a COO was first reported by The Information.

SEE ALSO: Uber's Travis Kalanick: Yep, I'm a jerk, basically

On Tuesday, Kalanick made that decision publicly known to his more than 11,000 employees and therefore to the world.

"This morning I told the Uber team that we're actively looking for a Chief Operating Officer: a peer who can partner with me to write the next chapter in our journey," Uber shared in a statement apparently in the words of Kalanick.

You could say that Kalanick has conceded that he's unable to run a company valued at $69 billion (and in the midst of a PR crisis) without a No. 2. To recap:

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While Uber has never played nice guy (short-changing driver's fares and passing my city regulations, for example), the company has faced public backlash from its recent moves that sparked the hashtag #DeleteUber to trend across Facebook and Twitter.
Uber first publicly irked its community (pretty much all of Silicon Valley) by lifting surge pricing during the taxi protest of Trump's Muslim ban. Kalanick also annoyed his Silicon Valley brothers by joining Trump's economic advisory council. He later stepped down.
Then, former Uber employee Susan Fowler Rigetti blew the whistle on the sexist and inappropriate workplace dynamics. Last but definitely not least, Bloombergsurfaced a video of Kalanick speaking abrasively toward a black car driver. Finally, the New York Times revealed a ways Uber has sketchily resisted law enforcement including a tool called "Greyball."
Uber has also had several executives leave now following the scandals. The SVP of engineering Amit Singhal resigned after reports surfaced of him leaving his previous job at Google due to sexual harassment allegations. Uber's vice president of growth Ed Baker also stepped down.

You can think of it as Uber is finally hiring its Sheryl Sandberg. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg hired the renowned Google exec to his social network in 2008. Since then Sandberg has been credited with taking Facebook from an engineer-centered company to a digital advertising powerhouse.

Fun fact: Facebook considers Uber as a "really good company" and as a "threat," per an executive speaking Monday.

So a COO is someone good at business. Emil Michael has served as Uber's Senior Vice President of Business since 2013. He was previously COO of Klout. He's also the man who threatened to stalk female journalist Sarah Lacy, per BuzzFeed. For some reason, Michael still works at Uber, and for some reason, he blocked me on Twitter after I sent this tweet:

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

TBD on Michael's promotion.

Uber isn't doing the heavy lifting of hiring a new executive by itself. The ride-hailing giant is hiring a search firm and is choosing between two finalists, Recodereported.

So we're still in early days. But members of Uber's board of executives have thrown some names into the ring of potential contenders: per Recode, former Disney COO Tom Staggs and CVS exec Helena Foulkes.

The board is reportedly cheering for a woman. We are too.

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