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Travis Kalanick

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Entrepreneur

The Resume

    (August 6, 1976- )
    Born in Los Angeles, California
    Birth name is Travis Cordell Kalanick
    Attended UCLA before dropping out to found the multimedia search engine, Scour Inc.
    Co-founded the peer-to-peer file sharing company Red Swoosh (2001)
    Co-founded the transportation network company/mobile application, Uber (2009)
    Estimated net worth is $6 billion (as of 2014)

Why he might be annoying:

    He chose Alexander Hamilton for his Twitter avatar.
    His first company was sued for $250 billion for copyright infringement.
    The lawsuit pushed him to declare bankruptcy, resulting in his moving in with his parents.
    He called Red Swoosh his 'revenge company' because it capitalized on the decline of the same companies who sued him in the first place.
    He claimed to have come up with the idea for Uber after failing to get a cab in Paris.
    He has been criticized for fostering a 'win at all costs' atmosphere in his companies.
    He sparked controversy after joking in a GQ interview that his Uber-CEO status made getting women easier (saying it should be called 'Boob-er' instead).
    He is prone to making hyperbolic statements (like 'I see a world in which there is no more traffic in Boston in five years').
    His favorite historical period is the Gilded Age (he idolizes self-made 'robber baron' financiers, like John D. Rockefeller).
    He hired former Obama campaign adviser, David Plouffe to manage the growing number of scandal that were beginning to dog Uber (Plouffe noted similarities between Kalanick and the President-elect's mentality).

Why he might not be annoying:

    He's a history buff.
    His brother is a firefighter.
    He is already being credited with revolutionizing the work force.
    He was one of the inaugural guests in the first week of Stephen Colbert's stint as host of 'The Late Show.'
    He is ambitious; constantly figuring out ways to push Uber to new limits (offering helicopter rides, takeout services, etc.).
    His girlfriend credits his supportive nature with helping to pull her out of her eating disorder and anxiety issues.
    He is the 290th richest person on Earth, according to the 2014 Forbes 400 listing.
    His company employs over 1.1 million drivers and delivers over 3 million rides a day.
    He transformed Uber from an upstart San Francisco two-car taxi service to a major corporation which does business in over 60 countries.

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2022, Out of 11 Votes: 45.45% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 24 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 15 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 6 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 13 Votes: 38.46% Annoying