In this episode, Clay tells the story of Uber. Uber started as a simple idea, and evolved into one of the most disruptive companies of the modern era. Drawing from Brad Stone’s The Upstarts, the episode explores Uber’s early days, its global expansion, and the never-ending battles with regulators, competitors, and the taxi industry.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:42 - How Uber went from a simple idea in San Francisco to a global transportation platform in under a decade
00:03:58 - Why the taxi industry was ripe for disruption and how regulation shaped Uber’s early strategy
00:31:08 - The role venture capital, aggressive expansion, and competition played in Uber’s rise
00:39:41 - How network effects, data, and dynamic pricing powered Uber’s growth flywheel
01:00:42 - How Uber’s business model and moat evolved over time
01:15:54 - Why leadership style and company culture became both a strength and a liability as Uber scaled
Disclaimer: Slight discrepancies in the timestamps may occur due to podcast platform differences.
BOOKS AND RESOURCES
- Join the exclusive TIP Mastermind Community to engage in meaningful stock investing discussions with Stig, Clay, Kyle, and the other community members.
- Learn how to join us in Omaha for the Berkshire meeting here.
- Brad Stone’s book: The Upstarts.
- Stig Brodersen’s Uber pitch.
- Shawn O’Malley’s Uber pitch.
- Bill Ackman’s 2024 Annual Letter.
- Follow Clay on X and LinkedIn.
- Related books mentioned in the podcast.
- Ad-free episodes on our Premium Feed.
NEW TO THE SHOW?
- Get smarter about valuing businesses in just a few minutes each week through our newsletter, The Intrinsic Value Newsletter.
- Check out our We Study Billionaires Starter Packs.
- Follow our official social media accounts: X (Twitter) | LinkedIn | Facebook.
- Browse through all our episodes here.
- Try our tool for picking stock winners and managing our portfolios: TIP Finance Tool.
- Enjoy exclusive perks from our favorite Apps and Services.
- Learn how to better start, manage, and grow your business with the best business podcasts.
SPONSORS
Support our free podcast by supporting our sponsors:
- HardBlock
- Human Rights Foundation
- Simple Mining
- Netsuite
- Shopify
- Plus500
- Vanta
- Masterworks
Fundrise
References to any third-party products, services, or advertisers do not constitute endorsements, and The Investor’s Podcast Network is not responsible for any claims made by them.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://theinvestorspodcastnetwork.supportingcast.fm
