Executive in Residence & Adjunct Professor, Columbia Business School
Westport, CT/Weston, VT
Joined June 2009
- Tweets3.5K
- Following399
- Followers964
- Likes1.3K
Thanks for the shoutout Steve. I enjoyed joining the rodeo! @RideshareRodeo
I thought I tagged Len's X profile in the title but noticed I had not. Make sure to check out @lenshermanCBS you will not regret it. Also in the original tweet/post is the complete remastered audio podcast episode, as well as Len's Medium link and the story just published October 14th. Check both of them out!!
Robotaxis and AI agents are coming for Uber, posing grave threats to the rideshare industry leader. This third article in my Uber trilogy explains why. len-sherman.medium.com/the-e…
Uber claims pay rates >$30/utilized hr, but many drivers NET less than the min employee wage of $7.50/ hr. Uber claims keeping <20% of rider fares, but drivers see Uber take >50%. Newbies keep signing up, but @The_Lekker shows why veterans know better & churn out medium.com/@kenosprintaccoun…
Merriam-Webster defines "Enshittification" as a process by which a digital platform gradually maximizes shareholder profits while degrading the experience of users. Uber is a poster child, as described in my article. len-sherman.medium.com/the-e… @Uber @ericries @sergioaved
In Vegas, casinos ban card counters, but surveillance capitalists have perfect memory of every hand you’ve ever played (and everyone else’s) and super-intelligent algorithms to make sense of it all. The house always wins, long-term @StacyCowley
In Vegas, casinos ban card counters, but surveillance capitalists have perfect memory of every hand you’ve ever played (and everyone else’s) and super-intelligent algorithms to make sense of it all. The house always wins, long-term @linamkhan
Today I published the first of a three-part series of articles assessing Uber’s strategy, business outlook, and the growing risks threatening its future. You can find the first installment here: len-sherman.medium.com/does-…
Balaji, you’re doing a great job torturing data until it confesses. I loved how you proved my lying eyes deceived me into believing Uber was losing share to Waymo, almost as much as learning from you that Uber’s take rate hasn't been increasing. Keep up the good work! @_balaji_km
Senator John Sherman, stumping for his Antitrust Act in 1890 said: “If we would not endure a king as a political power, we should not endure a king over the production, transportation & sale of the necessaries of life." The bill passed Congress 291-1. As relevant today as ever.
If you're a Lily Tomlin fan or someone who may wonder why @Uber rides are so expensive while driver pay is so low, my latest article should be of interest. len-sherman.medium.com/calif…
Airline domestic prices are up 35% this yr, driven by PREMIUMIZATION strategies, squeezing more margin by selling customers a better version of what they already buy by offering more legroom, no middle seats, snazzier lounges & faster wifi. 1/3 @WilliamJMcGee @ericgardner0
@Uber captures PREMIUMIZATION margins from an increasing share of upline svcs, but also driven by algorithmic pricing EXTRACTION strategies, which... 2/3
Dear @Uber, as an avid reader of your Under The Hood blog, I have a suggestion for a future article. You've claimed that “Upfront prices are great for riders and drivers. Before booking a trip, riders are shown the price they’ll pay at the end of the ride.”
I’m all for compensating drivers for extra work. In that spirit, can you share how much extra revenue Uber earned over the past year, from trips where it increased the rider’s upfront fare AFTER the trip?
And what % was paid out to compensate drivers? Also would be great to hear your thinking on why @Uber's pricing policy differs from all other transportation modes. (e.g., I've experienced lots of airline delays without extra charges). Keep those excellent blog posts coming!
@ConsumerReports, @MorePerfectUS and myself just released extensive studies on @Uber’s algorithmic pricing practices. @Uber doesn’t agree with our findings. As a public service, here’s my take on their 3 reasons why: 1/4
2. In Uberland, there's no such thing as how drivers & riders define take rates BECAUSE... those numbers are too high. Instead, we get to set inexplicable commercial insurance expenses that conveniently reduce our preferred definition of take rates. 3/4 len-sherman.medium.com/ubers…
