Uber may never be profitable … admits Uber

Private ride-hailing giant Uber, which is aiming to follow rival Lyft in becoming a public company this year, has warned that it may never be profitable. The candid admission comes in a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as Uber prepares for an initial public offering (IPO) which it reportedly hopes will value the company at $100 billion. This potential IPO figure is some way below the $120bn predicted by analysts just last year. And Uber warns: “We have incurred significant loss
April 12, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

Private ride-hailing giant 8336 Uber, which is aiming to follow rival 8789 Lyft in becoming a public company this year, has warned that it may never be profitable.

The candid admission comes in a %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external filing false https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1543151/000119312519103850/d647752ds1.htm false false%> to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as Uber prepares for an initial public offering (IPO) which it reportedly hopes will value the company at $100 billion.

This potential IPO figure is some way below the %$Linker: 2 Internal <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 4 37156 0 link-external $120bn false /sections/transmart/news/uber-ipo-could-be-valued-at-120-billion/ false false%> predicted by analysts just last year.

And Uber warns: “We have incurred significant losses since inception, including in the United States and other major markets. We expect our operating expenses to increase significantly in the foreseeable future, and we may not achieve profitability.”

Other admissions in the SEC filing include: “We are making substantial investments in new offerings and technologies, and expect to increase such investments in the future. These new ventures are inherently risky, and we may never realise any expected benefits from them.”

The company says the world of driverless taxis may not offer all that is hoped, too: “We may fail to develop and successfully commercialise autonomous vehicle technologies and expect that our competitors will develop such technologies before us, and such technologies may fail to perform as expected, or may be inferior to those developed by our competitors.”

In what has become a familiar refrain, the company also argues that its business would be “adversely affected if drivers were classified as employees instead of independent contractors”.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Flir webinar training in January
    January 13, 2017
    Flir Intelligent Transportation Systems is offering a 45-minute webinar 19 January, Make your traffic run smoother, more efficient and safer with Flir ITS, which discusses its solutions help to keep vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles moving safely and smoothly. More information and registration is available on the Flir website.
    Read More
  • New Riderscan survey on ITS and motorcycling safety
    January 17, 2014
    The Riderscan project is launching its third and last survey targeting European motorcyclists. Focusing on new technologies and powered two wheelers (PTW), the survey will feed the Riderscan report on traffic management, providing a unique opportunity to European riders to express their views on coming intelligent transport technologies. Riderscan aims to bridge the gap between road safety authorities, researchers, and industry stakeholders by setting up a detailed survey over ITS systems in relation wit
    Read More
  • Enlarged Proceq group to stress Swiss quality
    March 21, 2018
    Portable materials testing specialist Proceq of Switzerland comes to Intertraffic with an enlarged suite of products, having newly acquired fellow-Swiss company Zehntner Testing Instruments. Proceq acquired Zehntner, which specialises in the quality control of surfaces – particularly the gloss measurement and retroreflectometry of surfaces – on January 1. Zehntner is particularly strong in the field of hand-held retroreflectometers.
    Read More
  • Exhibition space at ITS World Congress going fast
    May 17, 2012
    With over five months to go before the 18th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems gets underway in Orlando, Florida (from October 16-20), 89 per cent of the current exhibit floor plan has now been reserved, according to ITS America's director of business development, Barbara M. O'Connor.
    Read More

Highlighted Content