Uber: Me and my Driver... ish.
I needed to get from our office at 153 Townsend St over to Kicklabs at 181 Fremont St. In the elevator on the way down, some colleagues suggested I try Uber.
I'd ridden in their pedicabs at SXSW and figured, why not, so I installed the Uber iPhone app and asked for a driver.
Sofian showed up 4 minutes later in a cream colored Lincoln Town Car (the only cream colored executive sedan in the Uber fleet, he proudly informed me). He was super professional and friendly. The ride cost me $20 -- about 4 times what a cab ride would've cost, so as a cash conscious startup founder I won't be using Uber on a daily basis, but when it's raining out and I can't find a regular cab, or if I'm with clients, then no question, Uber is awesome. And Sofian said he exclusively gives rides through Uber, meaning the startup has uncovered an AirBnB-like way to create entirely new type of taxi-plus type service. Very impressive.
Here is Sofian explaining Uber to me:
And here's what it looks like from the Uber driver's side when Sofian ends a trip: