Travis Kalanick reflects on what it was like being ousted from Uber, and why he doesn’t ‘think about the ex very much’

Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is now CEO of ghost kitchen company CloudKitchens.

Travis Kalanick’s messy breakup from Uber seven years ago would understandably still be a sore spot seven years later, but the former CEO said he’s moved on.

Kalanick spoke with angel investor and podcast host Jason Calacanis at the 2024 All-In Summit on Thursday about his efforts to remain in the head seat during Uber’s spectacular leadership upheaval in 2017.

Uber had faced a series of scandals that year, from sexual harassment and discrimination allegations — which led to multiple investigations into the company’s culture — to a $2.6 billion lawsuit from Waymo, Google’s self-driving car company spin-off.

The stream of crises caused tensions to rise between Kalanick and Bill Gurley, a general partner at Benchmark Capital, Uber’s then-largest venture capital investor.

Reflecting on the series of events, Kalanick told the podcast hosts that undergoing what he called a “political oppo campaign” by an investor for six months is “going to wear you down.”

Gurley, who began backing Uber in 2011, had become increasingly concerned along with his Benchmark partners and limited liability partners with the company’s mounting controversies.

With his firm’s reputation taking hits from Uber’s bad press, Gurley decided to help oust the Uber cofounder — with, as Kalanick describes it, what turned out to be devastating timing.

Kalanick was taking a leave of absence to grieve his mother’s death a month earlier when he received a letter demanding his resignation from a group of investors.

“That’s when they went in for the kill,” Kalanick said. “That, I just couldn’t hang. Bottom line, I just couldn’t hang.”

Kalanick departed Uber in June 2017 and, after a lengthy boardroom battle, was replaced by Dara Khosrowshahi, former CEO of Expedia, who has since been able to steer the company to its first operating profit of $1.1 billion in 2023.

Despite his tumultuous downfall with Uber, however, Kalanick said he doesn’t dwell on his former industry flame.

“I loved every minute,” he said. “But when you fall in love again, you don’t think about the ex very much.”

And Kalanick’s new focus is CloudKitchens, a ghost kitchen company that was valued at $15 billion in 2021.

However, Kalanick’s newest company comes with its own challenges.

The boom of ghost kitchens, which only produce food for delivery and pick-based services, has died down significantly post-pandemic. Kalanick’s company has faced multiple layoffs and even some operator lawsuits.