[mark_l_watson]

I wonder how much effect it would have on sales volume if ride prices were adjusted upwards to the break-even point? They must know what they are doing but it almost always seems counterintuitive to me to sell below cost over a long time period.

I like Uber as a service but I don’t really care how they do, except that a friend works at their AI lab.

[bunderbunder]

I'd probably use it less. Most my rides are to/from airports on business trips. Taking a cab usually involves a shorter wait, especially on a ride from an airport, so, when I choose rideshare, the steep discount is my main reason for doing so. At approximate price parity, there's a decent chance I remove every ride-getting app but Curb from my phone in the name of de-cluttering.

Supposedly Uber's original pitch to early stage investors was that they were going to grow so fast that they would quickly put all the competition out of business, and then, having achieved a monopoly, would begin to jack their fares way up. I don't know if that's true, but it's at least the only hypothesis that would seem to fit all the publicly available information. If it is true, then that would imply that they never intended to sell below cost over a long time period. It would also explain why they've been flailing for ancillary revenue sources since just about the exact moment it became clear that the story in their main market was going to be one of trench warfare rather than blitzkrieg.

[ghaff]

It seems odd to me as well. I don’t use these services a lot but when I do it’s almist always because they’re better than dealing with a taxi. Rarely do I choose them on the basis of price.

[BillionaireBear]

For the most part, a taxi is only better when I'm at either an airport or a hotel. Otherwise, I far prefer Uber/Lyft because it's on-demand, no cash needed and don't have to explain my route or destination.

[ghaff]

Yep. Sometimes I take a taxi from the airport because it’s right there and ready to go even though it costs more. Otherwise I will, within reason, use whatever gives me the best experiencr.