H. Yoo
Research expert covering South Korea
Uber Technologies - statistics & facts
Corporate evolution of Uber
Once named UberCab and founded in 2009, today’s Uber is establishing strategies to maximize profits in a dynamic and competitive global economy. Uber’s entry into the traditional taxi and cab market has sparked many conflicts, including several legal challenges. Therefore, the company constantly co-evolved to sustain its position. Within the first decade of its existence, Uber became a prominent sharing economy services provider, boasting 189 million users monthly by the third quarter of 2025. Uber operates in 70 countries, with over 11.2 billion trips carried out in 2024. In the same year, the mobility services company generated close to 44 billion U.S. dollars in net revenue. Uber’s gross booking volume had increased year-on-year until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The company has recovered despite gross bookings dropping to just above ten billion U.S. dollars in the second quarter of 2020. In the third quarter of 2025, Uber generated gross bookings of 49.7 billion U.S. dollars worldwide.
A strategy to disrupt the transportation economy
One of the prevailing methods of improving revenue streams is to innovate in the marketplace to gain a competitive advantage over other market participants. Innovations shape the market-making mechanism in the economy by introducing new opportunities and challenges to the growth process. Uber Technologies follows this strategy and has a fierce corporate outlook to disrupt the personal transportation economy through innovative approaches to old problems. Uber Technologies offers many services within and outside the sharing economy, including bike-sharing, air taxis, Uber Eats, and more. In 2023, Uber began offering autonomous rides by partnering with autonomous vehicle company Waymo. Since 2021, the delivery segment of Uber Eats has expanded rapidly and numbered around 13.8 billion U.S. dollars. In terms of regions, Uber has expanded across all major regions it operates in, with the APAC and EMEA regions growing faster since 2022.Â
Uber in the competitive market
Uber leads a long-term growth strategy, and the company achieved profitability in 2023. A striking example of Uber’s disruptive business strategy includes drone food delivery. A dogged corporate strategy comes at costs and challenges since the future is uncertain. Competition among firms is an example of this. For instance, Lyft is a major competitor of Uber globally. Although Lyft is not directly an innovator and investor in new business patterns, it has a successful strategy that advances existing economic possibilities. Lyft entered the market in 2012 and challenged Uber’s approach to the market by offering differentiated market services that improved Lyft’s reputation in comparison to Uber. However, Uber continues to command a larger market share. In 2022, Uber had 25 percent of the global ride-hailing and taxi market, while Lyft, its closest competitor, held an eight percent share.
