Expedia Inc Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi is poised to accept an offer to be Uber Technologies Inc’s CEO, according to an internal memo sent to Expedia staff, ending a drawn-out search for the next head of the ride-services company.
“Nothing has yet been finalized, but having extensively discussed this with Dara, I believe it is his intention to accept,” Expedia Chairman Barry Diller wrote in the memo.
Uber could not be immediately reached for comment. The San Francisco-based company has an all-hands meeting at 10 a.m. (1700 GMT) in which it is expected to discuss the issue, reports Reuters.
Travis Kalanick, Uber’s pugnacious co-founder, was ousted as CEO in June after shareholders representing about 40 percent of the company’s voting power signed a letter asking him to step down amid growing concern over his leadership and the behavior of senior managers under him.
Khosrowshahi, 48, would take on the daunting task of leading Uber out of a nearly year-long crisis. That includes mending Uber’s image, repairing frayed relations with investors, rebuilding employee morale and creating a profitable business after seven years of losses. Shares of Expedia, which Khosrowshahi has run for 12 years, were down more than 4 percent in morning trade.
