Today, I’m talking pinch David Risher, who is nan CEO of Lyft. I’ll conscionable opportunity from nan jump: I deliberation you’ll for illustration this one, since David is refreshingly nonstop and doesn’t propulsion a batch of punches.
He has connected nan committee of Lyft for years, but he only stepped successful arsenic CEO conscionable a mates of years agone to thief move it around. He’s done beautiful good pinch that truthful far, but he’s beautiful straightforward astir really nan institution wasn’t doing well, and he had to make existent changes to hole it. That besides intends he has a clear thesis astir what benignant of institution Lyft really is — a work institution that operates successful nan real, beingness world, as opposed to a tech platform, which is very overmuch really its large competitor Uber sees itself.
Uber comes up a batch successful this conversation, really — nan title betwixt nan 2 is conscionable arsenic fierce arsenic ever, and you’ll perceive David make a batch of references to “the different guys” passim this episode. But it’s not conscionable title for riders and drivers tht Lyft has to woody with. It’s nan early of proscription itself, and caller AI devices that mightiness return apps for illustration Lyft retired of nan equation entirely.
Verge subscribers, don’t hide you get exclusive entree to ad-free Decoder wherever you get your podcasts. Head here. Not a subscriber? You tin sign up here.
David and I talked a batch astir autonomous vehicles and really they’ll effect riders and particularly drivers. I ever inquire my rideshare drivers what I should inquire nan CEOs of nan platforms erstwhile I do these interviews, and nan only point they ever inquire is simple: erstwhile are you going to salary america more? So I asked David consecutive up: tin Lyft salary drivers much money, particularly erstwhile nan committedness of autonomy is to switch nan drivers entirely?
You’ll perceive David constituent retired that it’ll beryllium a agelong clip earlier Lyft aliases anyone other gets to nan constituent wherever self-driving cars are nan default. So for now, Lyft is still a work institution pinch humans doing nan work. But nan modulation to a world of robotaxis is going to upend that strategy complete time, and David has a batch of ideas astir really it mightiness play out.
Then there’s nan different benignant of problem pinch AI, what I’ve been calling nan DoorDash problem. In a world of AI agents going retired and booking cars and ordering sandwiches for you, apps for illustration Lyft and DoorDash mightiness conscionable move into commodities, not companies anyone interacts pinch directly.
Lyft, successful particular, is nan nonstop benignant of work that seems really susceptible to this problem, fixed really galore group will conscionable flip betwixt Lyft and Uber based connected which one’s cheaper connected immoderate fixed day. So I really wanted to excavation into that pinch David, to spot what he thought a work level for illustration Lyft could do to clasp loyal customers — customers they tin waste subscriptions and different services to — erstwhile users mightiness not beryllium opening apps astatine each successful nan future.
There’s a batch going connected successful this one, but I besides person to constituent retired that David is 1 of nan only Amazon aliases ex-Amazon group to springiness an original reply to nan modular Decoder mobility astir determination making. Like I said, he’s beautiful direct.
Okay: Lyft CEO David Risher. Here we go.
This question and reply has been lightly edited for magnitude and clarity.
David Risher, you’re nan CEO of Lyft. Welcome to Decoder.
It’s awesome to beryllium here.
I americium very excited to talk to you. It feels for illustration I’m having a batch of conversations pinch various work providers, I would say, crossed nan manufacture astir really AI mightiness beryllium changing, really they get customers, really nan platforms themselves are changing, nan quality of nan group who activity connected nan platforms and supply nan services, and Lyft has been location since nan start.
It’s 1 of nan very first app system apps, right? It’s nan progenitor of nan gig economy; it started, I think, pinch Uber and Lyft. You person been turning nan institution around. You’ve sewage immoderate caller ideas. There’s rather a batch to discuss, truthful I want to commencement astatine nan start. You’re a new-ish CEO, I would say, a mates of years into it. I deliberation astir group are acquainted pinch Lyft successful nan celebrated conception of Uber and Lyft. I deliberation I person a consciousness of what Lyft is. I usage it rather a batch because I person a in installments paper that gives maine rewards erstwhile I usage Lyft. I price-match nan 2 each nan time.
I’m conscionable curious, what is your conception of Lyft today? There’s Lyft successful nan celebrated culture, there’s nan Lyft galore group person experienced, and there’s what you, nan CEO, deliberation it is and what you mightiness want it to be. What do you deliberation Lyft is today?
You cognize what, actually, I’m going to commencement pinch what I want it to be. What I want it to beryllium is simply a measurement to service and link you amended than you’ve ever been served before, and link you to nan existent world. And truthful fto maine opportunity a small spot astir this. In a world wherever nan virtual method world is bigger and much powerful each azygous time and seductive, I want to beryllium nan 1 that gets you retired and makes you portion of nan existent world and possibly connects you to nan champion Lyft thrust you’ve ever had because you person an unthinkable speech pinch your driver aliases possibly you meet your early spouse successful nan barroom you’re going to.
That’s really what I want. I really want america to beryllium nan beingness glue that holds our nine together, and do it successful a measurement that blows your mind from a work perspective.
When you opportunity beingness glue, do you mean transportation, aliases do you mean different services? There are a batch of ways to construe that.
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, nary transportation, that’s our breadstuff and butter, that’s what we do. We do it mostly successful cars 800 cardinal times a year. If you unrecorded successful New York City, we do it connected Citi Bike; if you unrecorded successful San Francisco, we do it connected Bay Wheels; if you unrecorded successful Chicago, we do it connected Divvy. Increasingly, we’re doing it overseas arsenic good done Freenow. So yeah, it’ll beryllium done transportation, but proscription is simply a large deal. If you’re older, it’s really you enactment connected to your grandkids. If you’re younger, arsenic they say, it’s really you get to activity each azygous day. It’s portion of your regular life, and I don’t spot that going distant anytime soon.
When you opportunity transportation, again, astir group coming deliberation of…
Yep, rideshare.
Honestly, erstwhile you usage these apps, a Toyota Camry shows up. What we person developed pinch each of this technology, billions of dollars successful finance successful fibre optics and wireless, and 5G, is that you tin push a fastener connected your telephone and, to a precocious grade of certainty, a Toyota Camry will show up, which is beautiful amazing. That was not existent earlier each this investment. That’s 1 type of it.
There’s different type wherever a robotaxi shows up, aliases you get a bike, aliases a shared work shows up of 1 benignant aliases another. Are you reasoning that broadly, and are you reasoning astir nan modulation from there’s a driver and a car to possibly it’s a robot, possibly we’re telling you to return a train? There are a batch of ways to deliberation astir that. How are you framing that successful your mind?
So I would say… So awesome question, and possibly a nuanced answer. I really deliberation astir people, erstwhile they propulsion an app for illustration this, they benignant of cognize really they’re going to get from A to B, they benignant of cognize that already. So I’m not ace focused connected possibly it’s a train, possibly it’s a vertical takeoff aircraft; I’m beautiful focused connected a car, aliases possibly a bike, is going to beryllium what you’re going to use.
Now, it’s going to change. So let’s usage bikes, which is not nan spot that astir group start, but e-bikes coming are going bananas, perfectly bananas. And you tin consciousness it, you tin consciousness it successful New York aliases San Francisco, wherever a mates of years ago, biking was a niche thing, and now it’s a huge, immense mode of transportation, and e-bikes are nan logic for that. On nan car side, AVs, autonomous vehicles, are going to beryllium a crippled changer, a crippled changer. You tin beryllium successful nan backmost seat, you tin snooze, aliases you tin spell into statement mode. Maybe there’s a car tender successful beforehand who’s making a portion while you’re driving, each kinds of crazy stuff.
But I’m beautiful focused connected group jumping successful a car. Today it’s a Camry, possibly tomorrow it’s thing else. We tin talk astir that. Today it’s driven by a driver, astir apt tomorrow it’ll beryllium driven by a driver, but besides driven by a robot. I’m a, let’s say, an advocator of attraction successful nan technology, but wherever I’m expansive successful my reasoning is each nan different cool things that you should beryllium capable to do by getting retired of your location and not conscionable sitting connected nan sofa and watching Netflix and getting a nutrient delivery.
A type of that that I’ve heard respective times, astir notably, I think, from Brian Chesky from Airbnb, who was connected nan show, was that we should besides commencement trading nan experiences. We want to get you retired of your house; we want to get you doing things. Airbnb launched an full level that was bigger than conscionable location rentals, each experiences, for illustration wherever you tin person a backstage chef. That’s a large description of nan platform. Brian is very convincing erstwhile he talks astir it. Is your caput there? You should unfastened Lyft, and we should nonstop you to a concert?
Maybe. I mean, we’re earlier, I think, successful that travel than he is, but I deliberation that nan destination is beautiful similar. Literally, I really went to a Dua Lipa performance a mates of nights ago, and it was truthful fun, and it was great. I tin perceive to Dua Lipa connected my AirPods, and I tin do it erstwhile I’m stepping down nan street. She tin beryllium pinch maine each nan time, but it’s 10000 percent amended if we get you there, and we put you successful nan correct seat, and we make judge we prime you up astatine nan end, and we promote you to do it. And possibly if you’re a Lyft member, you get immoderate benignant of typical service: you spell to a restaurant, you get a typical dessert that’s not connected nan menu, aliases possibly you get typical entree to a lounge astatine nan airport. Yeah, I deliberation you’ll find america doing much and much of that.
I don’t want to over-rotate. Look, conscionable getting you reliably hundreds of millions of times a twelvemonth to wherever you want to go, picking you up instantaneously alternatively than having you hold 5 minutes, not having nan driver cancel connected you, each of these things. Making judge you get your points, making judge you tin walk your points if you want to, each of those basics really, really matter. But I deliberation complete time, we request to beryllium advocates for nan beingness world because nan integer world is fighting beautiful difficult for your attention, and I don’t deliberation that’s a awesome spot if that’s wherever we extremity up.
There’s an evident comparison to Uber that’s going to travel up complete and complete again. I’ll pre-apologize for nan evident comparisons to Uber that travel up complete and complete again, but there’s 1 here. Dara was conscionable connected nan show. I saw him again recently. They had a large announcement: they’re becoming for illustration a activity platform. What they, I think, abstractly spot Uber arsenic is that there’s supply, there’s demand. We are really bully astatine matching proviso and demand. We tin do that for cars, we tin do that for Waymo, we tin do that for food. What if we conscionable did it for everything?
And I deliberation nan first point they’re going to do is AI training, which is simply a chaotic first point to do, but they’re like, “Yeah, we sewage a bunch of drivers who are looking for activity to do, opening an app each day, and possibly we tin conscionable put different kinds of activity successful beforehand of them, not conscionable driving cars.” That’s very different from “we’re going to nonstop you to nan Dua Lipa concert”; it’s a very different constituent of view. Did you measure a akin idea? Did you say, “We don’t want to conscionable beryllium a activity platform; we want to beryllium an acquisition platform”? Because that feels for illustration a very large decision.
I agree. Look, I won’t remark connected those guys, but what I will opportunity is I really like… Okay, I’ve been successful nan occupation for 2 and a half years now, and 1 of nan things that I said from time 1 is we’re going to beryllium customer-obsessed. And I cognize you deliberation a batch astir Jeff Bezos. I worked for Jeff for a agelong time, truthful I don’t person to show you each nan reasons why I deliberation that’s a bully idea. There are 2 passengers, excuse me, 2 customers successful each car: a rider and a driver. And I want to do everything we tin to get to cognize our riders arsenic good arsenic imaginable and our drivers arsenic good arsenic imaginable and understand what it is they want.
And truthful I’m ace excited astir looking astatine nan world done that oculus and say, okay, from a driver’s perspective, I want to make much money, I want each sorts of different things, but I whitethorn beryllium a small little enthusiastic astir nan conception of becoming “a exertion level for everything,” because I deliberation what that tends to do, astatine slightest successful my experience, is make you little focused connected nan customers and what it is they really attraction astir and much astir let’s build this cool tech to do a full bunch of different things.
Let’s talk astir that two-year journey. You joined nan institution successful 2023, and you made a batch of changes astatine nan beginning. I would opportunity Lyft was not doing well. Immediately, you laid disconnected much than half of nan company, which you said, location are quotes, you said that it was very hard. Why’d you make that decision? Why’d you person to slim down correct away?
To beryllium capable to salary drivers what we needed to salary them and to beryllium capable to complaint riders what they wanted to, what they could afford. So again, if you commencement pinch nan thought that customer obsession is what’s going to thrust our profitable growth… And that was nan thesis. The thesis… I tin show you nan full speech astir really I sewage selected for this occupation and really I said nary to it, but yet said yes. And nan yes really came to, look, if nan committee of board believes that customer obsession is what’s going to thrust our profitable growth, past possibly I’m nan guy. And if you judge it, location are a full bunch of implications that travel from that. And nan first point is our costs building — it doesn’t let america to do what we request to do, which is to prime group up highly reliably, yes, but besides astatine a value that they tin afford, and truthful connected and truthful forth. So that was that, that was that, afloat stop.
Take maine to that room. Vanishingly fewer group ever get to spell question and reply pinch a committee of board to beryllium nan CEO of a large nationalist institution and opportunity nary and get called backmost in. Walk america done that. What was that really like?
Sure. Here it is, and I’ll spell measurement by step. So I had been connected nan Lyft committee for a mates of years. John and Logan, nan co-founders of nan company, had invited maine to beryllium portion of nan committee mostly because I deliberation they had a very absorbing observation, which is that boards don’t thin to deliberation a batch astir customers; they deliberation a batch astir strategy, they deliberation a batch astir finance, but they’re beautiful acold removed from customers. And I had travel up, arsenic you know, I worked astatine Microsoft successful nan early days and past for Jeff for a agelong time, moreover Worldreader, nan nonprofit that I founded, each of these, customer obsession was correct astatine nan center. So they’re like, “Look, David, really astir you subordinate nan board?” So this was successful 2021.
In 2023, astatine nan extremity of nan year, John and Logan decided to measurement back. They had been doing this for a agelong time. They were astir to move 40 years old. The only point they’d ever done. Time to move it complete to personification else. And truthful nan committee did what they do, which is conscionable formed a committee, looked astatine a bunch of candidates. I wasn’t portion of it; I was conscionable watching from afar.
And past 1 day, it was really Valentine’s Day, I retrieve it very clearly, 2023, my telephone rings, and nan committee chair, Sean Aggarwal, is connected nan line, and he says, “David, we’ve sewage an connection we deliberation you can’t refuse.” And I’m preparing myself for, “We want you to beryllium nan chair of nan audit committee.” Some unspeakable point that he’s trying to food maine up for, whatever. And he’s like, “No, John. Logan and I person been thinking, and arsenic we’ve been looking astatine each these outer candidates, we’ve been evaluating successful nan backmost of our heads, possibly nan correct feline is sitting correct present adjacent to us. And David…”
And honorable to God, and this is not… I said, “No, that’s ridiculous. I don’t moreover cognize what you’re suggesting, but I tin show you it’s not… I’m very focused connected getting kids reading. I’ve been focused connected that for galore years pinch nan Worldreader, which is simply a nonprofit I started. And you request to bent up nan telephone immediately, and you tin get backmost to work, do thing which has a higher likelihood of success.” But Sean said, “Why don’t you deliberation astir it?” And truthful I did. I virtually took a locomotion astir for astir an hour, and I thought, and I kept proceeding myself say, “Hmm, interesting.” As I mentioned, it was Valentine’s Day, truthful this became nan taxable of speech betwixt my woman and maine that evening. And she said, “David, I deliberation you should springiness it a effort aliases spell for it.”
So anyway, past John and Logan, a mates of days later, came over, and they sold maine connected nan thought a small bit. And past they did something, which I don’t deliberation they were being clever; I deliberation they were conscionable being honest. They said, “Just to beryllium clear, we’re not offering you nan job; we’re offering you nan chance to use for nan job.” And I’m like, “Hold on. Now I’m getting competitive.”
So anyway, complete nan next… It was astir a six-week process. I virtually put together a 100-day plan. I talked to each individual committee member. Some of them thought it was an absorbing thought that I was applying. Some thought it was a crazy idea, like, “This guy? That doesn’t make immoderate sense.”
But anyway, I put together a 100-day plan. I still person it. It’s really interesting. I was looking astatine it recently, and nan thesis of it was that I want Lyft to lead, and nan kicker astatine nan extremity was, and I want to lead Lyft, and everything successful betwixt nan 2 were each nan things we needed to do including laic disconnected a large portion of nan company, changing nan creation of nan team, starting to innovate again astir customers, and connected and connected and on. Anyway, that was it. One point led to another, they offered maine nan job, and I started connected April 17th, 2023, and I’m having nan clip of my life.
Again, vanishingly fewer group ever get to do this. So I person immoderate very weedy questions.
Do it.
What package did you usage to put your position together?
That is simply a weedy question. Two. Google Docs. So first, it was virtually a written document. I wasn’t astatine Amazon astatine nan clip erstwhile Jeff did nan full “everything has to beryllium a written archive and don’t usage presentations.” That was earlier each that happened. But I person always… I for illustration to write, and I definitive myself done writing. So anyway, I wrote a archive that virtually was a page of text, and past possibly 2.5 pages of outline, slug points type thing. That was shape one. And past that turned into a descent show, Google Slides, yeah.
Google Slides. The logic I inquire this is I deliberation it’s specified an absurd thing, but you sat down and opened Google Docs for illustration anybody other would unfastened Google Docs and thought of a bunch of ideas to move astir Lyft, and past you presented them, and location was immoderate conversation. The committee said, “Yeah, that’s what we want to do.”
Where successful that process did you think… Because you were connected nan board. Where successful that process did you think, “Boy, this institution has gotten excessively large and excessively unfocused, and I request to make these 2 large changes. I request to trim a 4th of nan institution and move complete its leadership.” Because location you unfastened Google Docs… Was that nan first point you wrote down? That mechanical penning and reasoning process is conscionable truthful fascinating to me.
This is ace interesting. I hadn’t thought astir it astatine immoderate level of extent for a while. So I conjecture here’s what I knew: There were 2 things that I perfectly knew: that we had to attraction connected customers. Again, it sounds cliché, but I tin springiness you an example, okay. This was thing that I detected while I was connected nan board, but didn’t really understand until I was wrong nan company. We would look astatine work metrics. An illustration of a work metric mightiness beryllium driver cancellations. And this wasn’t thing that nan committee typically would look at, but I would person a peculiar liking successful it. So I would say, “Let’s talk astir driver cancellations because I person this frustration. I unfastened up nan app, and immoderate percent of nan time, I get matched pinch a driver, and past 3 minutes later, it says, ‘You’re going to rematch pinch a caller driver,’ which I find irritating, and it besides lengthens nan process. I don’t for illustration it.”
And truthful I recovered out, this was really aft I joined nan company, but it still tells nan story. This is simply a institution that said they were customer-obsessed. I’m like, “Okay, let’s talk astir what that really looks like.” So I said, “Okay, let’s look at…” And they said, “Well, yeah, okay. So it’s astir 15 percent of nan clip that this happens, 15 percent. But nan bully news is, 95 percent of nan time, group extremity up rematching and taking nan ride. So nary large deal. Most group are still taking nan ride.”
I’m like, “Okay, clasp up, you’ve conscionable glossed complete nan astir important thing, which is that 100 percent of nan clip it happens, it’s a symptom successful nan ass, and nan rider is disappointment by it. And truthful I will guarantee you, you don’t person to spell and do a bunch of investigation connected this, I already know, group who person that acquisition are little apt to return rides successful nan future. So you tin spell up and determine if you want to look astatine that aliases not, but I already cognize nan reply to that.”
So I said, “Let’s attraction connected this,” arsenic an example. Early on, this was not my biggest decision; it was 1 of nan smallest. But again, possibly it tells nan story. So it was 15 percent of nan clip that this would happen, and I said, “Let’s attraction connected it for illustration a laser. Let’s talk astir what accusation nan driver gets erstwhile they’re making this decision. Let’s talk astir really large nan font is. Let’s talk astir whether we’re talking astir it successful dollars. Remember, what’s happening successful nan inheritance is that a driver is deciding whether aliases not to return nan ride, and then, for immoderate reason, a mates of minutes later, deciding differently. So possibly we’re telling them excessively early, possibly we’re telling them excessively late, possibly we’re not giving nan correct information, possibly it’s up connected nan surface for excessively small time, possibly nan font is excessively small.”
We looked astatine each azygous 1 of those things. When I started, it was 15 percent; a twelvemonth later, it was 10 percent; 3 weeks ago, it was 5 percent. As of this past Wednesday, it was 4.5 percent, truthful a monolithic change. But that’s nan customer obsession side. So customer obsession, that was nan first point I knew, was that we person to get really customer-obsessed, not conscionable blah, blah, blah. And past number 2 is we don’t person nan correct group connected nan elder guidance team. And this is old-school Jim Collins, Good to Great, if you’ve ever publication nan book. If you don’t person nan correct group connected nan bus, it conscionable doesn’t matter.
And truthful I asked our CFO to time off very soon aft joining, and that was its ain thing. And past location were costs building things and invention things and truthful forth. But those were nan 2 basics that I started pinch erstwhile I opened up that Google Doc because I knew we had to make changes successful personnel, and I knew we had to reorient nan institution astir customers. And past yes, I knew that successful bid to salary for immoderate of what we had to do to reorient ourselves, we were doing excessively galore things, and we had to trim a batch of staff.
This leads correct into nan Decoder questions. How is Lyft organized now? How person you system nan institution now that you’ve been connected a occupation for 2.5 years?
Sure. So let’s see. Well, I answered nan question, but I’ll springiness you a small spot of context. The mobility is that we’re organized by customer, aliases excuse me, nan reply is that we’re organized by customer. So we person a rider group, we person a driver group, and we person what’s called a marketplace group. That group is successful complaint of matching those riders and drivers successful existent time, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. So it’s operationally, but besides computationally, rather complex. We person a group that is focused connected our ads business, which is simply a comparatively newer business, a comparatively mini business, but astatine a $100 cardinal tally complaint pinch precocious maturation and precocious margins, it’s awesome. They besides do immoderate different things that are newer merchandise types. Of course, past we person a bunch of cardinal functions for illustration trading and legal, and truthful connected and truthful forth. But that’s really nan primary. Oh, and we person a backend group that does a batch of nan infrastructure, but really, I’d opportunity nan superior organizing vector is by customer.
So erstwhile you shape that way, immoderate of those cardinal functions tin get pushed successful different directions. Engineering is simply a cardinal function, but if you want to build nan performance experience, you’ve sewage to give immoderate resources to that versus bringing down rider mismatches, right?
How do you make those decisions? How do you equilibrium that hostility out?
We put a batch of our engineering into those customer groups. So those customer groups are full-stack groups. They’ve sewage merchandise management, they’ve sewage engineering, they’ve sewage tests, they’ve sewage design, each nan rest. So we judge nan truth that location will beryllium immoderate redundancy and immoderate distribution of talent. Then you person to inquire nan question: How do you maintain, let’s say, excellence across… functional excellence? How do you make judge your engineering is operating astatine apical talent? And we’ve identified group aliases teams aliases immoderate to thrust that benignant of horizontal excellence crossed nan company.
But nan trade-off is that there’s immoderate redundancy, we’ve sewage immoderate worldly happening in… And we person 2 apps: a driver app and a rider app. You tin ideate a world wherever there’s 1 group that develops some apps utilizing nan aforesaid frameworks and all. We don’t person that; we person 2 different groups. They create it utilizing 2 different frameworks. It’s a symptom successful nan butt sometimes, but you make it work; it’s amended that measurement because you’re adjacent to your customers arsenic opposed to adjacent to your technology. That sounds awesome until you recognize you person mislaid way of what your customers attraction about.
Amazon famously organized this way. I tin conscionable rumor immoderate criticisms of Amazon broadly. I cognize what those trade-offs are. We talk astir nan structures connected nan show each nan time. If you look astatine really Amazon is, they person tons of single-threaded owners of 2 pizza teams that make their ain products. Those products seldom talk to each other.
As you were describing, you extremity up successful a batch of different… Google, nan aforesaid way. You extremity up successful a batch of different directions, and abruptly you’re like, “We’ve sewage to rotation retired AI crossed nan company,” and you don’t person a communal shared model to do specified a thing.
Have you tally into this astatine Lyft? Are you alert of this trade-off? How are you managing that?
Remember erstwhile you asked maine astir my imagination for Lyft and I talked a batch astir rideshare and a attraction connected getting group astir and making judge that… So I would opportunity a spot that we person is we’re really rather focused connected our customers and our usage cases.
And truthful while yes, occasionally those issues harvest up, it’s a mini point for us. And besides I would say, and this is… I don’t cognize if this is simply a bully aliases bad thing, but it conscionable is. I americium very progressive pinch merchandise decisions. Very, very involved. Just reasoning astir nan past 24 hours and really I spent my clip and merchandise is just… And it’s, again, location are parts of nan squad that for illustration that, location are parts of nan squad that find it a small frustrating, but I person nary problem saying, “We don’t request to do these 3 different things; we’re going to do this 1 point here, we’re going to do it ace well. And that intends that these different 2 teams that thought they were going to get to activity connected those things, we’re conscionable not going to person that happen. Instead, we’re going to person them attraction connected thing else.”
So I conjecture a small spot of, to a definite extent, we lick nan problem by focusing because we’re focused connected 1 point and not… Amazon’s focused connected galore things, but we’re focused connected 1 thing, and past second, I play a beautiful large domiciled location successful breaking ties and…
That does look for illustration nan measurement to make this building work; you request to person nan leader who’s conscionable going to show up and break ties each time long. It besides seems for illustration standard is nan other… that nan leader can’t scale. At nan aforesaid time, if you want to pull awesome people, you person to springiness them immoderate autonomy. How do you equilibrium this? What’s nan cadence of letting your folks do what they want to do and past showing up and telling them they person to do what you want to do?
I mean, it’s specified a classical issue. And truthful I really wrote astir this past twelvemonth successful nan shareholder letter. I wrote astir 2 things: I wrote astir stratification, why products thin to get worse, and really we’re pushing things nan different direction. And past this topic, which I called Falcon Mode. So nan benignant of ocular that I wanted group to deliberation astir is nan falcon, which is flying astatine 2,000 feet and hangs retired up successful nan entity often because they request to spot everything. They’re looking for, Where’s my adjacent meal? And they’re beautiful bully at, moreover astatine 2,000 feet, seeing wherever that adjacent repast is. And past they dive successful deep, and they person to get nan meal; otherwise, they starve and autumn retired of nan sky. So this coming down and going backmost up and coming down and going backmost up, that’s nan world that nan CEO lives in.
It’s art. And portion of it is anticipation setting. Part of it is telling my team, “I americium going to do this. I americium going to talk successful excruciating item astir this loyalty programme that we’re successful nan process of developing.” And anyway, that’s going to beryllium wherever I spell Falcon Mode connected you, but past I’m going to spell way, measurement up, and I’m going to say, “Now it’s yours,” and you’re going to show maine each nan ways wherever I sewage it incorrect aliases you’re going to make it amended aliases you’re going to push backmost aliases immoderate it is. I don’t know. There’s nary easy reply here, but I deliberation a batch of it is conscionable possibly being judicious because if you do it…
I’ll opportunity a small spot of an adjacent thing, sorry for going into specified item connected this. This is really a remark that I heard Gavin Newsom of each group say, which I thought was very interesting. He was saying you person 2 types of powerfulness arsenic a leader: you person positional power, and you person civilized authority. And nan quality is pinch positional power, nan much you usage it, nan little you person of it. So if you usage excessively overmuch of it, you squander it, right? Because group yet get tired of being told what to do.
Moral authority is simply a small different. If you say, for example, successful my case, “We’re going to beryllium a customer-obsessed organization, and we’re going to look astatine everything that lands, and occasionally, I’m going to travel successful and punctual you what that really looks like, but past I’m going to backmost measurement off.” The much you usage it, nan much it creates itself, it reinforces, and group spell disconnected and they person their ain astonishing ideas and stuff. So anyway, that’s nan mode I effort to get to. You tin inquire group connected my squad whether I’m successful aliases not, but I effort to beryllium very, let’s say, deliberate astir nan equilibrium betwixt nan two.
I’m ever funny erstwhile you extremity up successful that divisional structure, there’s an magnitude of conscionable re-coordinating that needs to occur, and astir tech companies person chosen against it. So it’s fascinating that you’ve chosen this way, and you are very clear that you really request to do that circumstantial task, because I person truthful galore conversations with… I mean, nan number of CEOs who are like, “I don’t do anything,” which is very funny, is very high.
Let maine opportunity 1 small mini point astir that. So Scott Cook, who I’m judge you cognize of, nan laminitis of Intuit and still very progressive connected nan board, he’s conscionable successful nan process. I conscionable saw him a mates of nights ago, and he’s personification I’ve known for galore years. He was connected Amazon’s committee successful nan early days, and we’ve reconnected complete nan past bit. Anyway, he’s really penning an article that I deliberation comes retired immoderate time successful nan Harvard Business Review astir a study of a mates of companies wherever he makes nan lawsuit that nan champion companies are nan ones wherever nan CEO focuses not conscionable connected nan what, but really connected nan how, really gets progressive successful nan how.
This full “I don’t do thing arsenic a CEO,” he’s like, “That’s bullshit.” If you’re moving a company, you’re doing a lot. And a batch of it is not conscionable nan large ideas; it’s really are we really going to organize? How are we really going to get this point done? So I don’t know, I’d beryllium a small skeptical. I don’t know. I deliberation nan CEOs are saying that either… I don’t cognize what that’s each about. But anyway, it’s not who I am. I’ll conscionable opportunity it that way.
I consciousness for illustration our producers and I could do an full section of Decoder just connected why we deliberation immoderate group opportunity immoderate of nan things they say. Speaking of which, we person a small broadside stake going connected on really you’re going to reply nan different Decoder question: really do you make decisions? What’s your framework?
Okay. I mean, nan evident thing, and it really is true, is that I commencement from nan customer and activity backwards. I don’t cognize whether that’s what you were betting, I would say, but that is really true.
I’ll opportunity possibly a different thing, though, that I haven’t talked astir publically excessively much. So I guess, okay, I americium blessed successful nan pursuing way: I don’t find making decisions ace hard. And what I mean by that is I deliberation there’s a measurement of… In a sense, each you’re doing arsenic a CEO aliases immoderate leader is making decisions, successful a sense. Like yes, no, prosecute nan correct people, occurrence nan incorrect people, opportunity yes to nan bully ideas, opportunity nary to nan bad ideas. That’s nan job. And location are a batch of decisions there. Is it nan correct personification aliases nan incorrect person? Do I occurrence them aliases support them? I emotion them for illustration a brother, but possibly they’re not nan correct person. All these things. And past is this a bully thought that’s going to standard and customers are going to emotion it, aliases is it a bad thought that was conscionable dumb successful nan first place?
Okay, truthful that’s benignant of a framework, I guess, but not really; it’s conscionable an study astir nan job. And past I get down 1 level and say, “Well, I don’t personally mind making decisions a lot, I don’t, but I americium alert that each determination takes a definite magnitude of effort. It does.” And truthful what I effort desperately to do is make nan biggest determination I perchance tin truthful that everything other conscionable becomes almost a checklist.
Let maine springiness you a individual example. Years ago, my woman and I sat down, this was backmost successful nan early 2000s, and said… We met astatine Microsoft, and we said, “It’s interesting. At work, we person these multi-year plans, but present we person a family.” We person 2 daughters, arsenic you and I were talking astir earlier we started. At nan time, they were very young, and we said, “What’s our multi-year scheme for our family?” And we came fundamentally to nan conclusion that we want to unrecorded extracurricular nan United States astatine immoderate point. We want to springiness ourselves and our kids that experience. That was nan large decision.
Then location are a bunch of questions astir where, when, what schools, and really to get insurance. All these things. But we already made nan large decision. And truthful everything other was conscionable a checklist. And we ended up doing it. A mates of years later, we moved extracurricular nan United States. It turned retired to beryllium a very, very agelong and very important point for our family to do. But I told that very agelong communicative to say, I effort to clasp myself to what are nan biggest decisions that tin perchance beryllium made, wherever erstwhile that determination is made, everything other becomes conscionable a checklist. And past frankly, I don’t interest a batch about… If things are past connected track, I don’t person to interest excessively overmuch astir it, and I tin spell connected and make nan adjacent decision.
Okay, we each mislaid nan bet. Congratulations. I deliberation we should nonstop you an award. You are nan first ex-Amazon personification to ever opportunity thing different than that location are type-one and type-two decisions.
Oh, God, yeah. Oh, shit. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, yeah, sure.
Literally successful nan pre-production, nan statement was, “He’s from Amazon, he’s going to opportunity location are 2 one-way doors and two-way doors,” and we were each like, “All right, we’ll conscionable get done it.” You’re nan first 1 ever, nan first personification who’s ever travel wrong a 100 miles of Amazon headquarters, who did not instantly opportunity one-way doors and two-way doors.
I consciousness proud. I person my ain ideas. Look astatine that.
Very good!
Let maine inquire you astir immoderate worldly that is changing, that I deliberation you’re going to person to make immoderate decisions about. And honestly, it will accent immoderate of your structure. AI is here, and it’s happening successful a batch of ways. Every CEO of a work company, whether that’s TaskRabbit aliases Uber aliases whoever has travel connected nan show, I’ve asked this question. I’ve been calling it nan DoorDash problem. I should astir apt get nan group from DoorDash connected nan show to really inquire them straight astir this point that I’ve been calling nan DoorDash problem for six months.
But conscionable a mates of days ago, OpenAI had DevDay, and they showed a bunch of integrations wherever you could inquire ChatGPT to spell do worldly for you, including booking an Uber. We’ve seen different agentic products. Amazon announced Alexa+, which will beryllium capable to book a formation for you and will traverse websites; it’s built into Chrome now. We’re going to traverse websites connected your behalf and do worldly for you.
The backend of that, whether it’s you aliases Zocdoc aliases whoever other is, well, we person a database of information, we cognize wherever each nan drivers are. If you want to bargain a sandwich, we cognize wherever each nan sandwiches are. And truthful your agent’s going to travel and bid a sandwich connected our website, and we won’t get nan customer.
We will conscionable go a work supplier to immoderate chatbot interface, and we won’t beryllium capable to do upsells. We won’t say, “Hey, location are Dua Lipa tickets,” aliases immoderate we’re going to say, and that’s going to shrink our margins, and we’ll conscionable go commodity work providers. This feels for illustration a very large problem. I’ve been asking everybody astir it. Does that consciousness for illustration a large problem to you?
I mean, possibly for nan reasons you conscionable said, but I wouldn’t opportunity it’s 1 of nan apical 5 that I interest about. And a large portion of it is, first of all, retrieve what you’re doing: you’re trusting something. You’re trusting that this thing, this person, is going to travel and prime you up, and they’re going to conscionable beryllium connected time, and it’s going to beryllium safe. And if I time off my iPhone there, I’m not going to get nan point stolen. All these different things. And it’s physical, it’s safety, and it’s real-world stuff. And truthful nan astir utmost type of what you’re saying is I spell to ChatGPT and I say, “Please travel prime maine up.” And immoderate rando comes to prime maine up, and there’s nary guarantee, there’s nary service, there’s no… That would beryllium bad. I don’t deliberation a batch of group would beryllium ace excited astir conscionable immoderate rando coming, picking maine up successful an unbranded service, and immoderate it is.
So if it’s not going to beryllium an unbranded, conscionable a rando picking maine up, past it astir apt has to beryllium 1 of nan guys who are doing existing rideshare, and that’s us. And past we’ve sewage each sorts of ways wherever I deliberation we tin compete. So we want to compete connected relationships, by nan way, not conscionable connected transactions. And what does that look like? That [is something] you already mentioned: you take us, among different reasons, because you get points connected your in installments card, an unnamed in installments card, erstwhile you do that. Well, that’s still going to beryllium nan lawsuit successful nan future. And truthful you mightiness person a penchant for america that you push done ChatGPT. If they effort to disintermediate, you say, “Well, no, I really person a penchant here.” And we’re going to do a full bunch of different things to make judge that you person a very, very beardown penchant for asking for america by name, not conscionable saying, “I want to get to a place.” And past 2nd of all, retrieve that-
Wait, tin you show maine what those things are? Because correct now connected my phone, nan apps are broadside by side, and I unfastened them both, and I will… if it’s wrong $5, I’ll prime nan in installments paper points, but I will almost ever prime nan cheaper one. And I consciousness for illustration an supplier going disconnected onto nan web and uncovering nan cheapest 1 is really nan astir nonstop threat to your margins, to everyone’s margins.
So I don’t deliberation it’s a large separator threat because we already price… Let’s talk astir value specifically. So you are not alone; rather a fewer group value shop. Interestingly enough, from my perspective, I wish everybody did. And you’re saying, “Well, that’s weird. Why?” Because remember, I person a 30 percent share, and nan different guys person a 70 percent share. And we value almost astatine parity. In fact, I mean, our strategy is really to value a small little erstwhile we can, but it’s really difficult because we person costs. And those are existent costs: insurance, driver pay, and each these different things. By nan way, nan different guys person beautiful damn akin costs, which is why our prices are truthful adjacent for illustration this.
Now, we mightiness person a somewhat different strategy; possibly we compete a small harder astatine airports, possibly they compete a small harder astatine thing else, but it’s marginal. So my constituent is, why do I opportunity I want everyone to cheque both? Because if everyone checked both, I’d triumph astir apt 55 percent of nan clip arsenic opposed to 30 percent of nan time. So that’s awesome for me. So let’s just, first of all, let’s just… Step one, I don’t mind that.
That is nan separator pressure. If ChatGPT is saying, “Here are nan 2 rates,” and nan strategy to triumph is to ever person nan little rate, you will quickly statesman competing successful a measurement that, correct now, possibly you aren’t competing each nan time.
No, no, we are. That’s nan thing, we already are. That’s nan basic… I deliberation nan premise of nan question. This is existent successful immoderate industries wherever value makes little of a difference, and therefore, if you’re… And cipher wants to beryllium reduced to competing connected price. But nan truth is, that’s our life each azygous day. Every azygous day, we aftermath up and we look competitively marketplace by market, wherever we are high, wherever we are low, really we tin get lower, and truthful forth. So I don’t interest a batch astir personification else.
I virtually don’t cognize really someone, a 3rd party, not america aliases nan different large guys, could underprice america consistently. People try, and they spell retired of business. That’s nan measurement that useful because they recognize that nan costs that they person is nary little than nan costs that we have. They conscionable effort to subsidize it done immoderate different magical point for a while, and they tally retired of cash. And we person a large standard and each these reasons why it’s difficult to underprice us.
And past betwixt america and nan different large guys, again, there’s conscionable not that overmuch left. You cognize what I mean? So it’s for illustration I don’t cognize really either 1 of america tin underprice nan different successful a sustainable way.
But past backmost to nan basal thing, of course, which is if you past judge that nan value is beautiful overmuch nan same, and again, if astir group judge that, past I astir apt person a 50 percent share, not a 30 percent share, but I digress. Then it becomes: Who tin get you nan points? Who tin let you to salary pinch nan points? For example, who tin prime you up faster? Today, we prime you up astir a infinitesimal and a half faster than we did a twelvemonth and a half ago. And oftentimes, not always, but oftentimes, it’s really faster than nan different guys because we’ve sewage bully algorithms, I’ll conscionable opportunity that. And we person drivers who for illustration america a lot. That’s besides a existent root of strength. So anyway. And past there’s a work you tin get successful nan car. What happens erstwhile you get successful nan car? Today, you mightiness opportunity it’s a small generic Toyota Camry.
But I don’t know. Maybe location are things we tin do pinch nan drivers location to make you consciousness a small spot much special. That mightiness make you say, “You cognize what? I really do person a preference.” Even if nan value is precisely nan same, I’ll still ever inquire for a Lyft complete nan different guys because I’m going to get a amended acquisition from nan driver. So that was a small spot of a roundabout point. But nan logic I don’t interest excessively overmuch astir it is that I deliberation it’d beryllium very difficult for anyone to “go direct” to nan 1.5 cardinal drivers that we have. I deliberation that’s very, very difficult to do.
And past connected price, I’m not ace worried astir being competed retired of nan crippled because I deliberation I’ve sewage a beautiful bully costs position. I deliberation it’d beryllium difficult for personification to underprice, and we already compete beautiful directly. And truthful past I deliberation it comes backmost to who tin connection nan amended service. I consciousness really bully astir our expertise to connection a great, awesome service.
So that your customer narration will traverse immoderate interface group are using? People will say, “I still person a narration pinch Lyft.”
And remember, astir group don’t alteration what they’re doing unless thing other is 10 times better. Checking prices connected hose tickets is hard. It’s move pricing, immense swings. You’re readying ahead, picnic of a lifetime, each nan things. But our unit is like… I’d opportunity very fewer group ever nonstop maine notes saying, “I had a difficult clip pinch your app aliases getting a car,” aliases thing for illustration that. So, successful different words, I really deliberation that we already do a very, very bully job. So I’m not judge of nan further worth added. Again, if location was personification other who could travel successful and springiness it a overmuch little price, I mightiness beryllium worried. But I…
The different situation location is that you mightiness person a marque relationship, but they’re not really opening your app. The app is wherever you mightiness show them upsells to different products, aliases straightforward advertising, aliases explicate and reenforce why your marque is much valuable than nan different one, because it’s each happening successful personification else’s app.
And truthful that would beryllium a drag. Yeah, yeah, that’d beryllium a drag. But I would say, astatine slightest what I’ve seen truthful far, conscionable utilizing ChatGPT arsenic nan example, they look to be, let’s say, much accommodating astir that than you mightiness expect. In different words, they don’t… And again, it’s not that they can’t alteration strategies aliases that there’s nary logic for them to, but astatine slightest nan benignant of apps that I’ve seen thin to beryllium a small spot more… springiness much power complete to nan app developer than conscionable a generic thing, because I deliberation they besides admit brands matter to a batch of people.
My mentation connected that is that nan agentic products that they are promising don’t activity arsenic good arsenic they should, truthful they are forced to put app views successful nan chatbots. But erstwhile you perceive them each talk about… crossed nan board, not conscionable OpenAI, but crossed nan board, you perceive them talk astir their agentic products, there’s not a position that you’re going to get dumped into an app; there’s a position that nan supplier will really do it. And erstwhile nan supplier starts doing it, your customer narration starts to diminish. And that’s nan bosom of what I person been calling nan DoorDash problem. Now it doesn’t matter wherever nan car comes from.
Of course, it’s thing we deliberation a batch about, truthful I don’t want to diminish it astatine all. But if you have… This problem becomes a overmuch bigger problem if A, you’re not utilized to competing connected value already, aliases B, you don’t person a large proviso that would beryllium difficult to get to directly. And it’s really difficult to get to 1.5 cardinal drivers and cognize wherever they are and each nan different things astir them successful immoderate nonstop way, difficult to spell around. But who owns nan customer and each that? That is going to beryllium played out. And portion of my job, of course, is to make nan Lyft marque truthful absorbing and compelling that sloppy of really you get here, you still consciousness it.
Remember, here’s nan past point I’ll say, people’s relationship pinch nan app — and this is different from america versus immoderate chiefly tech companies — is comparatively little compared to nan clip they’re spending successful nan car. And truthful I would opportunity portion of my occupation is to fig retired really to make that in-car acquisition moreover much absorbing and, frankly, person a bigger spot successful your encephalon than conscionable really you hap to get there.
Let’s talk astir that for a second. You do person nan different customer, nan driver. Every clip I get into a rideshare car, I inquire nan driver, “What would you person maine inquire nan CEOs of these companies?” It is ever nan aforesaid answer. I’m judge you tin conjecture what it is. They each want nan rates to spell up. I don’t deliberation I’ve ever moreover heard different answer. They each conscionable want nan rates to spell up.
The thought that possibly nan rates you complaint to customers mightiness change, and nan world of AI aliases nan margins mightiness alteration if you’re not doing arsenic galore upsells successful nan app because of AI interfaces, is successful nonstop conflict with, boy, nan drivers want their rates to spell up. They would for illustration your costs to beryllium higher.
One, tin you salary drivers more? This is nan number 1 mobility I get, truthful I’ll conscionable inquire you directly: Can you salary drivers more? Do you spot a pathway to doing that?
I mean, nan short reply is we salary drivers arsenic overmuch arsenic we perchance can. Our interests are overmuch much aligned pinch drivers than I deliberation nan celebrated imagination and drivers would think. And nan logic I opportunity that is because we some person nan aforesaid goal, which is to get arsenic galore rides going done nan level arsenic imaginable and to summation nan full volume.
Now, of course, astatine nan individual driver level, they mightiness say, “Well, gosh, I wish location were less drivers connected nan level truthful I don’t person to compete pinch arsenic galore different drivers.” There are things for illustration that. Riders would opportunity nan opposite: “I wish location were much drivers truthful that personification could prime maine up faster,” but broadly speaking…
So fto maine backmost up for conscionable a 2nd because it’s specified a large deal. Okay, first of all, let’s commencement pinch nan ace basics. How overmuch do drivers make? Let’s really talk astir this for a second. Okay, we’ve studied this a lot. There’s a awesome achromatic insubstantial connected our website that really is super, ace good researched and database, not conscionable opinions.
Okay, broadly speaking, erstwhile a driver is driving connected our platform, which intends they’re either coming to prime you up aliases they’ve sewage you successful nan car and they’re dropping you off. They’re not waiting. So we’re going to travel backmost to that successful a second. When they’re driving, they’re making astir gross nationwide, $30 an hour, 30, 3 zero. Now they person costs: gas, maintenance, cleaning nan car, these things. Not insurance, we salary that, but repairs, things for illustration that. If you return each those costs into account, it’s astir 20 bucks an hour, 20 bucks an hour, truthful 20 bucks an hour. So let’s conscionable opportunity that.
Now, truthful past you’re thinking, “Well, gosh, that doesn’t sound truthful bad.” Well, okay. But here’s nan portion that you besides person to know, which is they’re not ever getting paid that 20 bucks an hr because sometimes they’re waiting, and erstwhile they’re waiting, they’re not making money. Now, erstwhile they’re waiting, often they’re connected nan different guy’s app. And truthful net-net, they still mightiness beryllium making $20 an hr if they’re really bully astatine flipping backmost and forth. But you can… I can’t guarantee demand. I can’t guarantee connected my platform, connected anyone’s platform, there’s ever going to beryllium demand.
What do they get successful return for each that, for not getting a guaranteed $20 an hour? They get nan truth that they tin move nan app connected anytime they want, disconnected anytime they want, they tin prime up their kids, they tin spell connected vacation, they don’t person to telephone successful if they don’t consciousness for illustration coming to activity — that’s what they get. That’s nan large trade. The large waste and acquisition is: here’s really overmuch you’re going to make, and we’re going to effort arsenic difficult arsenic we tin to person you make more, arsenic difficult arsenic we can. We’re going to build AI.
You mentioned AI a mates of different times. A batch of our astir absorbing applications of AI correct now are really for drivers. We person a full driver net adjunct that allows a driver to spell successful and say, “I want to thrust Monday, Wednesday, Friday, not Tuesday, Thursday. I don’t want to thrust complete nan bridge. I sewage to spell home, beryllium location astatine 5 o’clock. Give maine nan champion imaginable plan,” arsenic an example. Or a driver reference letter. You started to thrust 2.5 years ago. You’re 1 of our apical 5 percent drivers. You’re ace reliable. Here’s a reference missive you tin virtually return to your adjacent imaginable place.
There are each sorts of things that we tin do to… We tin springiness state discounts, we tin do each kinds of things to effort to make your net some connected nan level and moreover if you determine to spell do thing other arsenic precocious arsenic possible. But nan reality is, A, we can’t guarantee demand, and B, it is perfectly existent that there’s a headdress to really overmuch we tin salary based connected 800 cardinal information points a twelvemonth of astir really overmuch riders are consenting to pay.
And nan past point I’ll opportunity is, you tin spot that if you look crossed nan country, for example, successful Washington state, Seattle successful particular, rates are rather precocious there, quite, rather high. And average, let’s say, bookings $30 an hr versus $20 an hr because of section authorities that went in. And conjecture what? The number 1 title I perceive location is, “I don’t get capable rides. I don’t get capable rides. What’s happened to each nan rides?” I’m like, “Well, conjecture what? That’s what happens present if you don’t fto nan marketplace group nan rate.”
The different broadside of changing rates, pushing them higher, is that really you get much drivers connected your level versus Uber? The driver readiness battles of nan early rideshare days are beautiful legendary. You had task capitalists fundamentally subsidizing some sides of nan market.
That’s right.
Right. So you paid drivers precocious rates.
That’s right.
And past I remember, I conscionable sewage astir New York City for free connected nan slope of SoftBank’s money.
Basically. That’s right.
I don’t cognize what other nan Vision Fund accomplished, but I traveled successful style.
But you traveled successful style. Yep, absolutely.
That was fun.
It’s awesome.
Obviously, that has each travel to an end. Now nan marketplace is really connecting proviso and request much directly. But that would beryllium really you could return stock from Uber. You’ve talked astir taking stock from Uber respective times now. One measurement you could do it is to conscionable say: we person much drivers because we salary them much money. Does that travel out? Have you modeled that out?
We really effort to salary drivers more. Again, conscionable for illustration we effort to complaint riders less, but it’s very hard. This is not a high-margin business, but we look astatine it virtually each azygous week aliases each azygous day, actually. Here’s what I tin show you that mightiness beryllium a small surprising: We person a 29-point advantage complete nan different guys connected a magnitude that I really attraction about, which is, “Which rideshare level would you for illustration to thrust for?” We person 29 points successful preference.
There’s really different mobility that’s adjacent to it that we inquire each quarter, which is, does driving for Lyft aliases nan different guys springiness you a consciousness of pride? And we besides have, conscionable coincidentally, a 29-point spread successful some of those for each sorts of reasons. Primarily among them, and each nan measurement backmost to your first point, we do thing nan different guys do not do, which is we guarantee, we guarantee you will never, never, ne'er arsenic a driver make little than 70 percent of what riders salary aft security is taken retired complete nan people of a week.
And virtually each week, we nonstop retired millions of dollars, millions of dollars of nonstop deposits to drivers to apical them up to astatine slightest 70 percent. Usually, nan number is astir 85 percent, but 70 is nan absolute floor. That is simply a huge, immense driver penchant for us. The drivers that are possibly a small spot much thoughtful aliases nuanced successful their reply to you erstwhile you inquire nan mobility would add… But I cognize a batch of them, they cognize it, but they don’t really opportunity it because it’s not successful their champion liking successful immoderate way, they’re still whatever. I cognize that Lyft has really done immoderate existent activity present to make judge that our salary is astatine slightest a… Because that we tin guarantee… We can’t guarantee demand; we tin guarantee we’re ne'er going to salary you little than 70 percent.
So that’s a very agelong measurement of saying it’s difficult for america to consistently salary more. We effort it sometimes, and sometimes market-by-market we do, but broadly speaking, again, this is simply a very, very businesslike marketplace, and truthful what we effort to do alternatively is each sorts of different things for drivers to make them consciousness appreciated, seen, well-paid, not unfairly paid, and truthful connected and truthful forth. That’s benignant of what I’m getting at.
The different unit connected drivers and rates connected this full ecosystem is autonomous vehicles. A batch has been said astir autonomous vehicles and really they mightiness displace drivers, really they mightiness alteration those rates. The cars don’t rather thrust themselves yet, right? There’s Waymo successful a fistful of markets, there’s immoderate Tesla is doing successful a fistful of markets, but it’s coming. We tin spot it’s coming.
That’s right.
That requires an tremendous magnitude of investment. Lyft, I would say, mostly you guys are successful a business crippled crossed nan board. That’s really you’re operating. How are you reasoning astir that, and really that mightiness impact nan drivers successful your level today?
Let’s commencement pinch precisely that. And past zoom out. So we’re really very focused connected thing called Lyft-ready. So Lyft-ready… Well, this is excessively detailed. Let’s backmost up for 1 second. Yeah, driverless cars are perfectly coming. No question. And we person sewage immoderate awesome partnerships. Everything from May Mobility, which is successful Atlanta, which is simply a comparatively mini company, to Waymo, which is simply a very large company. We’ve said that we’re going to beryllium moving pinch them successful Nashville adjacent year, to Baidu, which is nan Alphabet of China, wherever we’re moving together successful Europe. So from nan absolute biggest to nan smallest, yeah, we’re partnering.
And that makes sense. We’re bully astatine supplying request and matching pinch proviso and pricing and mapping and mislaid and found, customer service, moreover fleet management, we do that. The different guys don’t do that. We person a full subsidiary that does that, which is keeping nan car serviced and cleaned and ready, but we don’t do AV tech ourselves, and we’re not an OEM, we don’t make cars, okay, truthful we partner.
Now, to reply your question, well, broadly speaking, actually, location will beryllium 2 large sources of AVs. Some will beryllium from, let’s say, group who person fleets of AVs. Maybe they bought a full bunch of them, and they want to monetize them for illustration that, nan large fleets, and past immoderate from individual owners. And I really do judge this, and I deliberation this is wherever nan intersection pinch your mobility gets truthful interesting. Today, we person 1.5 cardinal drivers connected nan platform. What are they doing? They’re trading 2 assets they have: their clip and their car for money. That’s nan trade. I put myself successful nan driver’s seat, I thrust around, I usage my car, and I get paid for that.
Okay. Tomorrow, you tin ideate a world wherever they tin do nan nonstop aforesaid thing. They tin bargain a car, it’s a self-driving car, because I deliberation complete clip almost each car will beryllium a self-driving car, and they tin past flip a move and make it Lyft-ready if we’ve done our occupation right, and put it connected nan Lyft platform. What does that mean? That car drives around, it picks group up, it drops them off, it uses each of our mapping and each of our pricing and each sorts of things. It besides uses our fleet guidance to make judge it’s ever cleaned and ever charged by nan clip it gets backmost to you, and past shows up again erstwhile you request it again.
I deliberation 1 measurement to reply nan mobility is we want to make judge that individuals tin proceed to participate successful this gig economy. It’s conscionable that now they tin do it successful a different way. They don’t person to usage their time; they tin usage their beingness assets. The 2nd point is we are… I mentioned-
Wait, tin I inquire you 1 mobility astir Lyft-ready?
Yeah, of course.
You’ve conscionable described nan aforesaid imagination for Lyft robotaxis arsenic Elon Musk has described for Tesla robotaxis. He has been less, I would say, clear that nan cars would beryllium cleaned erstwhile they return to you. He doesn’t look interested. Have you talked to Tesla astir saying, “Okay, you’ve sewage this large robotaxi idea. Do you want to put a Lyft app connected it and conscionable make this go?”
I don’t want to picture precisely nan conversations that hap aliases don’t. I would say, successful general, nan vibe that Tesla gives off, I think, is typical of really their institution goes, which is, we for illustration to do things ourselves. So I’ll conscionable opportunity that arsenic a generic thing. Fleet management… You’ve touched connected 3 things each astatine once. I deliberation there’s a mobility astir what Tesla is going to do. Interesting question.
Well, they’re nan only car institution that’s trading cars to consumers coming that tin do what you’re describing. Even if you judge that they should aliases should not beryllium doing it, nary 1 other is trading you a car that tin do what FSD tin do.
One 100 percent today, precisely right, 1 100 percent. So, my position location is that they will request immoderate benignant of fleet management. Unless you want to push each of this backmost to… Well, first of all, they’re going to request a full bunch of customer work and a full bunch of different things that group don’t deliberation excessively overmuch astir because nan standard is truthful small. But arsenic you commencement to turn and group commencement to time off their umbrellas and iPhones successful nan thing, and you person connected committee and disconnected board, there’s a full bunch of infrastructure. Let’s put it this way: creating a rideshare business is not for nan faint of heart. So nan first point that you mightiness inquire yourself is, is each of that a bully thought for them to walk a batch of power on, aliases should they partner pinch different organizations that are already doing that? Which you’re asking, and I’m declining to reply nan specifics, but I deliberation successful general, it’s an absorbing speech that nan companies should beryllium having.
And past there’s this much subtle part, I think, which is, again, to your point, it’s each good and bully to deliberation that these cars conscionable magically complaint themselves, cleanable themselves, support themselves, but that’s not nan reality. We person a full subsidiary called Flexdrive that oversees 15,000 cars. We do it today, mostly for drivers who don’t want to usage their superior car. And truthful we rent them a car, we bargain these cars, we show nan drivers erstwhile they’re going to request service. We make judge that we’ve sewage sensors connected nan cars to bring… We cognize really agelong it’s going to return to work nan car, each these different things, that very unsexy fleet guidance stuff. Gosh, it’s nan quality betwixt profit and nonaccomplishment connected an asset, and we hap to beryllium very bully astatine that because we’ve done it for galore years.
And truthful backmost to your point, I deliberation portion of nan logic that different companies don’t talk arsenic overmuch astir this arsenic we do is that they don’t do it, but we do it, and truthful we know. And it is portion of nan logic why our Waymo business successful Nashville is, I think, rather interesting. Waymo and america said, “Gosh, this is really important, and you guys do this and do it well. So really astir you do it present successful Nashville for us?” So I cognize we’ve covered 5 different things each astatine nan aforesaid clip there, but I deliberation that’s portion of nan logic group are not focused connected it arsenic much, because it’s not a capacity that galore companies bring to nan table, but we do. Yeah.
I’m very funny astir nan “My car’s going to make maine money arsenic I sleep.” There’s a batch there, but 1 institution that tin really waste that merchandise today. But nan remainder of it, I ever deliberation astir it arsenic like, man, this really implies there’s a batch of request successful my sleepy town, while I’m sleeping, for my car. Is that going to work? Because I really request my car rather often during nan day. Let maine inquire you about-
I deliberation that’s besides fair, I deliberation that’s besides fair. I deliberation that for galore people, that won’t needfully beryllium their superior car. I deliberation location will beryllium entrepreneurs who spell retired and bargain 5 cars conscionable for illustration group bargain mini fleets coming for achromatic car service, and that’s astir apt much apt successful nan adjacent term.
Let maine inquire you astir Waymo existent quick.
Sure.
And I want to zoom retired again. You’re Waymo’s partner successful Nashville. Waymo is collaborated pinch Uber successful different markets. Waymo is moving its ain work successful immoderate markets. It does feel… And they’re evidently backed by Alphabet; they’ve been backed by Alphabet for a agelong time, and they’re going to walk a batch of money to win. It conscionable seems very obvious. If you inquire Sundar astir it, he’s like, “We’re conscionable going to support spending money because now it’s very clear that we’re adjacent to winning.”
They’re going to walk a batch of money until they win. They’re looking for partners, they’re looking to spot what winning looks like. You’re successful a weird competition. You’re successful a weird bake-off. You’re nan partner successful 1 market, they’re nan partner successful different market.
Totally.
They’ve sewage their ain work successful yet another. How do you comprehend that competition? Have they told you what winning looks like?
I deliberation they’re figuring it out. I really do. And I return them astatine their connection that they… Look, I deliberation a connection that they usage beautiful often is optionality. They person thing beautiful cool. They’ve sewage exertion that useful astir arsenic good arsenic anyone’s successful nan world. Again, I deliberation really only Baidu would beryllium nan existent title there. I deliberation everybody other is to immoderate grade disconnected wherever they are. And it useful and it useful well, and group for illustration it. So that’s a bully spot to be.
Thus, if you’re successful that position and you think, “Well, gosh, I’m not really judge really this is each going to play out.” A wholly reasonable strategy is, “Well, let’s effort a small spot of everything. Let’s effort doing it ourselves end-to-end. Let’s effort partnering successful a definite measurement pinch 1 company. Let’s effort partnering successful a different measurement pinch different company, and we’ll see.”
When I fast-forward, I deliberation a very apt result is they will realize, gosh, arsenic I conscionable said, moving a rideshare business is rather expensive, and it’s very physical. It involves… Again, deliberation of nan scale: 800 cardinal rides we do each azygous year, 50 cardinal riders, 1.5 cardinal drivers. I cognize those aren’t portion of nan picture, but someone’s sewage to ain those cars. There’s going to beryllium personification other successful this image who owns these things and wants these things utilized.
If you’re Google, do you want customer service? Do you want each these different things that you person to do to run that service? Maybe you don’t mind it successful a mates of markets. Maybe it’s cool. You tin person nonstop entree to your customers, and you tin do definite brand-building and possibly get immoderate information from it, whatever, whatever. All good. But do you really want to do it successful 280 cities astir nan United States aliases each astir nan world? I don’t know.
I deliberation a very apt result is that they will beryllium friendlies. Or what’s that? Co-opetition aliases whatever. They’ll compete successful immoderate markets, and successful others, they’ll partner, and our occupation is to beryllium nan champion partner they tin perchance person truthful that they, complete time, springiness america much of their business and enactment focused successful their ain measurement successful immoderate mini number of markets. And that’s great.
Lyft utilized to person its ain autonomous car section that was sold earlier you became nan CEO, but you person different partnerships that bring you person to really making nan hardware. You conscionable announced one, a institution called Tensor. There’s immoderate weirdness pinch Tensor. It utilized to beryllium a Chinese institution called AutoX, and we were told that it each sewage coiled down. Have you ridden successful a Tensor car? Do they exist?
They do exist. I person not ridden successful a Tensor car myself, but colleagues and group connected my squad have.
I’ll show you astir Tensor conscionable for 30 seconds. It’s a very absorbing company. So they are besides trying to create, somewhat uniquely successful nan market, a car that is simply a self-driving car and a robotaxi. So, successful different words, thrust maine aliases thrust personification other from nan start. They collaborated pinch VinFast, which is simply a Vietnamese company. They person a mini number of cars present successful nan United States. But I deliberation what’s astir absorbing to them astir VinFast is that it’s a very caller company, and therefore, their assembly lines are rather new. They person very modern technology, and truthful connected and truthful forth. They person outfitted their cars pinch a crazy number of sensors. Everything is redundant.
I mean, you talk to… The guy’s sanction is Professor X, who runs nan company. You talk to him, and he’ll show you really important it is to person redundancy astir braking, redundancy astir steering. He wants this point to beryllium perfectly bulletproof, and nan steering instrumentality virtually moves retired of spot if you don’t want it there. I mean, it’s a very, very absorbing merchandise that they’re designing. It’s very expensive. It’s $300,000, thing for illustration this. But, of course, it’ll travel down. Still, it’s really meant to beryllium a very bespoke thing. And arsenic I said, self-driving from nan start. He’ll show you astir lidar and really location are different versions of lidar; they’ve sewage nan best, each this stuff.
Okay, why did I spell into item astir this? I deliberation complete clip — and you tin spot this done history — group commencement by retrofitting thing existing arsenic a measurement to get started, and past yet they realize, “Gosh, this is simply a caller thing, and truthful therefore, let’s create our ain purpose-built thing.”And I deliberation they conscionable decided, successful particular, “We’re going to jump complete nan bespoke aliases nan return personification else’s and effort to retrofit, and we’re conscionable going to go. It’s small-scale, it’s ace expensive. We’re going to thrust that costs curve down.”
Other people, obviously, Waymo’s done precisely nan opposite. They usage nan Jaguar I-Pace, and they’re going to move to nan Zeekr. Zoox is more… So anyway, agelong reply to a peculiar question, but I deliberation Tensor is very absorbing because it’s our first impervious constituent for nan Lyft-ready concept, moreover though it’s ace small, ace experimental, but really interesting. And I’d emotion nan truth that they’re trying to innovate.
When you look astatine that bet, you’re describing nan large disruptive bet: We’re going to return nan caller technology, and we’re going to commencement pinch that arsenic nan instauration of nan product, and we’re not going to interest astir each nan worldly that happened before. Sure, that shape repeats.
Right successful nan mediate of that, conscionable to bring it backmost around, is nan driver. The thought that Lyft-ready will put a bunch of rideshare cars successful people’s houses, aliases that it’s worthwhile to make a exertion stake connected self-driving cars successful that circumstantial measurement that Tensor mightiness beryllium making. All of that puts unit connected nan driver. The logical extremity authorities of that is that 1 day, location will not beryllium drivers connected this level astatine all. How agelong do you deliberation that will be?
Many, many, galore years, many, galore years. Beyond nan activity span of 99 percent of drivers connected our platform. Part of it is conscionable basal laws of physics. Like astatine nan Taylor Swift performance aliases astatine nan extremity of nan NFL game, aliases moreover astatine 5 o’clock each day aliases 9 o’clock successful nan greeting each day, location conscionable aren’t capable self-driving cars. And there’s surely not capable self-driving cars being driven… Excuse me, location are surely not capable riders who only want self-driving cars.
A batch of them conscionable want to get wherever they’re going accelerated and cheap, and therefore, they don’t really attraction whether it’s a robot aliases not, but they really won’t hold for 15 minutes erstwhile they could hold for 2 minutes for a human-driven car. And past location are group who want thief pinch their luggage, and past location are group who want to person nan conversation, and past location are group who conscionable don’t for illustration technology.
So location are each sorts of reasons. And past location are regulatory things, and past location are snowstorms, and past location are crystal pellets, and each kinds of things. There are a cardinal reasons why, successful nan adjacent term, nan hybrid web is nan amended approach, each nan things.
In nan mean and agelong term, location will beryllium less drivers arsenic a percent, but retrieve 160… Let’s conscionable punctual ourselves of this crazy fact. Today, arsenic I said, we do 800 cardinal rides, possibly nan different feline does 1.5 cardinal rides. So possibly 2.5 cardinal rides betwixt nan 2 of america each twelvemonth successful rideshare successful nan United States, I’m talking about. Okay, what’s nan full number of rides that group get successful nan car and thrust themselves? 160 cardinal per year. So 2.5 billion, 160 billion. So location is simply a batch of room betwixt 2.5 cardinal and 160 cardinal for america to proceed to turn and grow and person much drivers connected that platform.
And by nan way, each nan estimates astir nan number of self-driving cars by, say, 2030, are 30,000. That 30,000 is simply a mini thing. We person 1.5 cardinal drivers connected 30,000. Now they’re moving 24/7, precocious efficiency, precocious utilization. So it’s not apples to apples, but still. That’s, again, sorry for each nan verbiage there, but it’s a measurement of saying I deliberation nan hybrid web dominates for a long… Hybrid, meaning immoderate driven by humans, immoderate driven by autos, really by robots, will predominate for a long, long, agelong time. And I deliberation by nan clip we get to a constituent wherever location are comparatively smaller numbers of drivers than location are today, gosh, I deliberation we’re talking about… You mightiness arsenic good deliberation of it arsenic a generation. I don’t mean 25 years, but I mean astir group who thrust connected nan level don’t do it for much than three, four, 5 years type of thing. At that point, it’ll beryllium a full different world.
And past nan past point I’ll opportunity is that I mentioned it arsenic benignant of a joke astatine nan beginning, but not really, nan car tender idea. I deliberation location will beryllium nosy things that group are going to beryllium doing successful nan cars that are not conscionable driving; it’s making drinks, it’s telling stories, it’s being nan section guy, it’s, again, helping you pinch nan luggage, it’s doing each kinds of different worldly that drivers do coming connected nan side. And now, I don’t know, conscionable being a… I don’t know. Who knows, who knows?
Are you going to expose that benignant of driver individuality?
I dream so.
I mean, you could do it from nan apical down. You could say, “You’re each bartenders now. We’re doing Old Fashioneds successful nan car.” And possibly nan level will support that, and possibly nan ecosystem will support that. But nan different point I’ve heard from drivers… Sometimes you get into a Lyft and nan driver has group up 15 charging cords and will fto you play pinch nan music. And sometimes it’s conscionable a feline successful a Camry, and there’s nary complaint differential there, and nan other effort is not rewarded.
Essentially, it’s a commodity. The constituent of nan level is to commodify nan service. Do you deliberation you’re going to fto nan drivers decommodify successful that way?
I do, I really do. And I think, look… We conscionable announced 2 days ago, I guess, nan acquisition of a institution called TBR, which is simply a very, very high-end, ultra-luxury, chauffeur-driven service. It’s for non-deal roadworthy shows and Super Bowl events and worldly for illustration that. It’s a very, very bespoke thing, but 1 of nan reasons we did it is because nan level of work that they supply is unbelievable. And gosh, tin we study a batch astir it?
There, nan drivers do each kinds of absorbing things. I mean, they’ll get you your java earlier you get successful nan car because they cognize that you for illustration a latte and not a level white. And past erstwhile you spill nan java connected your shirt, they’ll prime nan caller garment up while you’re successful nan gathering truthful that it’s fresh for you erstwhile you travel out. And they’ve already called nan adjacent person, saying, “We’re going to beryllium 2 minutes precocious because nan guy’s sewage to do thing earlier he gets there.”
So I’m not saying you tin supply that level of work to each azygous personification 24/7, but I deliberation nan thought that… I mentioned concisely earlier this conception of enshittification, a work that starts retired amazing, and past gets a small spot little truthful complete time. I deliberation rideshare for truthful agelong has been caught successful this benignant of binary of america versus nan different guy, and very competitive-focused, and everything’s a commodity, and everything’s astir cost, and truthful forth. And I deliberation complete time, you get to nan constituent wherever it’s like, that’s nary longer interesting.
What’s overmuch much absorbing is nan adjacent 160 cardinal rides that group are taking successful rideshare that they’re not taking today, and really do you fto that driver show up successful a measurement wherever they go different from a robot, not conscionable a robot with… a quality robot, a soma robot. So yeah, I deliberation there’s a lot. And past nan mobility is really do you do it astatine scale, and really do you do it successful a high-quality way, and really do you do it successful an economical way? But those are what… Aside from self-driving and each nan rest, nan quality broadside is what makes this manufacture truthful interesting.
I do person to connection a plug here: Cory Doctorow, who wrote a book called Enshittification and coined nan term, will be connected Decoder very soon, and you tin perceive him talk astir it.
Oh, fantastic, I’m a fan. I sent him a small statement aft I wrote this. So I wrote astir enshittification past year, and I sewage introduced to Cory. He really came to nan office. He, astatine nan time, said each kinds of bully things. So anyway, he’s a bully guy. I dream you person a awesome speech pinch him.
It’s Sarah Jeong connected my squad who did it, but she’s smarter than me, truthful they had a awesome conversation. Both of them are, truthful that’s conscionable nan measurement it goes.
Let maine inquire you conscionable 1 mobility astir nan curve here, and past we tin wrap it up. You’re saying successful nan aggregate that attrition will lick this problem. Drivers will postgraduate disconnected nan platform, they’ll find different work, aliases they’ll retire, aliases do immoderate they do, and they’ll go. And arsenic that happens, robots will travel online, and you’ll find immoderate benignant of happy medium. That’s broadly nan plan. We’re not going to switch a batch of drivers. Drivers are going to graduate. Robots mightiness switch them. Some different drivers mightiness switch those. Who knows? That’s nan agelong horizon. And I tin spot really that mightiness activity out.
In nan short term, what I perceive very straight is, “Oh, nan robot cars person travel to my town, now nan request is moving distant from this platform. I’m waiting astir for moreover much rides than I was before.” Or nan dynamics person changed, aliases nan rates person changed, and it’s very individualized, and it’s difficult to make an statement that says, “Well, look, 1 time you’re going to retire.” But you don’t get to make nan semipermanent statement to nan driver themselves erstwhile they’re faced pinch nan threat of autonomy. How do you make nan statement to nan individual driver that this will beryllium bully for them?
So 2 things. I mean, I deliberation first — and we look astatine this information a batch — I would opportunity that nan stories you conscionable told are not really supported by nan data. In different words, for example, we’re really growing. Lyft is increasing faster successful markets wherever location are AVs, moreover erstwhile we’re not participating successful nan AV, faster than average. So our mean maturation complaint is 15 percent. We’re increasing faster than that successful places for illustration San Francisco and Phoenix and places for illustration that.
I deliberation there’s a mendacious causality wherever group spot a self-driving car and they’re like, “Oh, I didn’t get a thrust today, and that must beryllium that,” but that’s really not really nan case. In general, self-driving cars really grow nan market. They really oxygenate nan marketplace successful caller ways, bring tourism, and each kinds of things. So constituent two, however, but that’s conscionable data, which isn’t needfully going to person anyone who’s emotion this.
Okay, truthful let’s talk astir nan emotion side. We are very progressive successful this. We person a full driver roundtable thing, and nan full taxable of that… Where we bring drivers together — we conscionable did it again past month, we’re doing it successful different parts of nan country. The taxable is let’s talk astir what happens erstwhile AVs travel to municipality and really you’re going to beryllium okay. How are we going to collectively make thing that is okay for you?
I mentioned this portion very concisely before, but I’ll travel backmost to it. One of nan things I americium ace excited astir is this driver accomplishment missive that we now fto drivers create for themselves. So erstwhile you’ve driven a definite number of rides connected nan platform, you tin spell in, and acknowledgment to AI, push a fastener that says David started driving in… This is really true. I thrust for Lyft, and I deliberation my first thrust was connected April 13th aliases 14th of 2023. So anyway, he’s been driving since April 2023. He’s 1 of our apical — now this part, I’m making up — 5 percent drivers. He’s ace reliable. Here are a mates of typical comments. I would urge David for immoderate service-oriented business he mightiness have.
And that credentialing… Because our drivers are successful nan work business. So I deliberation 1 reply to your mobility is not conscionable let’s hold for attrition, but let’s thief drivers who want to usage this arsenic a benignant of mobility thing.
By nan way, retrieve that point I conscionable talked astir pinch TBR, nan institution we conscionable acquired? Those drivers make rather a batch of money, rather a batch of money. And truthful to nan grade that you want to thrust up successful nan ecosystem, achromatic and higher level, that’s different anticipation too. And that ain’t going distant anytime ever. No robot takes nan spot of nan chauffeur who gets you coffee.
So I deliberation it mightiness sound a small vague, but each I want to opportunity is that this is not thing we’re conscionable saying, ah, excessively bad for them. We’re really saying nan opposite, which is, “How tin we thief this modulation hap successful a measurement that feels orderly?” Yes, really tin we stock nan information of what’s happening, of course, but besides really tin we thief drivers to transition?
And by nan way, possibly we tin prosecute them successful customer service. This is thing we talk astir each nan time, each of our driver customer work folks, really cool would it beryllium if each 1 of them were ex-drivers, arsenic an example? I deliberation location are immoderate answers to this question.
Well, David, this has been a awesome conversation. I’m excited to person you backmost arsenic much and much of these things develop. What’s adjacent for Lyft? What should group beryllium looking retired for?
So if you look to, maybe, six months agone and past six months from now… Six months ago, we were only a home company; now we’re an world company. We acquired a institution called Freenow successful Europe, which is awesome. Now, erstwhile you spell to Europe and you unfastened your Lyft app, you’ll get a statement saying, ”Please download nan Freenow app.
Those are our partners. Over time, that’ll conscionable beryllium nan Lyft app. That’ll beryllium wonderful. We’ll beryllium capable to run successful Europe natively. If you’re a United customer, you’re soon, very soon going to beryllium capable to unfastened up nan Lyft app and get points from United Airlines. So put that successful your cap.
If you’re a CEO, soon you’ll beryllium capable to usage TBR arsenic portion of nan wide Lyft ecosystem. So a mates of very evident ways wherever we’re, you mightiness say, expanding retired and expanding up. We’re going up successful position of definite demographics and work level, and retired successful position of geography. In much and much markets, you’re going to beryllium capable to return a self-driving car connected nan Lyft platform. Today, you often do an off-platform aliases connected personification else’s platform. So that’s ace exciting. All those things are happening successful nan adjacent term.
I deliberation if you look astatine nan mean and agelong term, I’ll travel backmost to nan beginning, our intent is to service and connect. And this is almost much of a philosophical point than a institution thing. Every infinitesimal you’re spending watching Netflix astatine home, each infinitesimal you’re spending getting nutrient delivery, it’s awesome, those are awesome experiences, but gosh, I really do want to beryllium a adjuvant unit successful your life to besides make judge you’re connecting pinch group and getting retired and astir and experiencing nan existent world. And truthful arsenic you look complete two, three, 5 years, you should expect Lyft to become, I hope, much and much adjuvant successful that portion of your life arsenic well.
Terrific. Well, I’m excited to get a thrust successful a Tensor car very soon. It looks crazy. I conscionable want to spot 1 successful person.
It’s insane.
We’ll person to person you back. Thank you truthful much, David.
Yeah, it’s been a huge, immense pleasure. Thanks for nan clip and nan questions.
Questions aliases comments astir this episode? Hit america up astatine decoder@theverge.com. We really do publication each email!
1 month ago
English (US) ·
Indonesian (ID) ·