Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber

by Mike Isaac

The first version of UberCab was not an app. Users logged in to a desktop computer browser, navigated to UberCab.com, requested a black car and, in theory, would receive a ride within ten minutes or less for only one and a half times the price of a yellow cab. It was more expensive, yes, but the idea was people would pay more for the reliability and convenience of on-demand service. Soon enough, the company farmed out development, and contract programmers hacked together a rudimentary version of an UberCab iPhone app. It was buggy and slow, but it worked. Camp, a sucker for luxury, focused on branding. He was fixated on maintaining a fleet of high-end black cars like Lincolns, Suburbans, and Escalades. Even the initial launch motto—“Everyone’s Private Driver”—was supposed to convey a sense of exclusivity, an upscale way to get around town. Camp believed everything about the brand should exude coolness. In the early days, that meant cold-calling hundreds of limo drivers around San Francisco and convincing them they should drive for the new service. That grunt work largely fell to Graves, who would Google black car services across San Francisco, show up to their garages, and pitch the bemused fleet staff on driving for UberCab.