Avi Mehrotra on the Dealmaking Edge: Private Markets, Activism, and the AI Factor
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Los Angeles Times
2 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Uber's ride results disappoint even as bookings top estimates
Uber Technologies Inc.'s rideshare division missed Wall Street estimates, disappointing investors who were looking for signs of more robust demand in its signature business. Total gross bookings — a closely watched metric that includes ride hails, delivery orders and driver and merchant earnings but not tips — came in at $46.8 billion for the three months ended June 30, topping analysts' estimates. But that was mostly thanks to a strong showing from the company's food-delivery unit. Bookings for Uber's rideshare division — the business it remains best known for — fell short of Wall Street's projections, with $23.8 billion versus an average estimate of $23.9 billion. Investors responded by sending the stock down as much as 3.5% on Wednesday. It has been up 47% so far this year, outpacing the S&P 500 Index. The market reaction overshadowed a rosy third-quarter outlook. The bookings forecast for the current period represents an 18% to 21% growth rate, according to Bloomberg calculations, faster than the 17% gain Uber saw in the second quarter. Uber also announced new share buybacks of an additional $20 billion, reflecting its 'continued confidence in the business,' Chief Executive Officer Dara Khosrowshahi said in prepared remarks. The company still has $3 billion remaining from its prior authorization. Its results are likely to set expectations for the broader ride-hailing and food-delivery industries, as broader concerns remain about the health of the US consumer. Rideshare peer Lyft Inc. and delivery rival DoorDash Inc. are both scheduled to report results after the close on Wednesday. The delivery business, which fueled the strong second-quarter bookings, saw more users placing orders in the US, Australia, Canada and Mexico. Khosrowshahi also cited an uptick in grocery and retail merchants on the platform. The company completed its acquisition of Turkish delivery app Trendyol Go at the end of the second quarter, which will help boost business in the country, he added. On the rideshare side, Uber has been offering more types of trip types to cater to different user needs. While ride prices have been increasing less sharply as of late thanks to moderating insurance costs, the firm said its efforts to improve affordability in the US are also helping boost trip growth in the current period. In May, for example, it launched cheaper pooled rides and a monthly ride pass allowing commuters to lock in prices on frequently taken routes. Uber partially attributed the results to the cross-selling advantage it has for the two core services it offers. Khosrowshahi said that 12% of annualized delivery bookings — translating to $10 billion — are generated via the Eats tab within the Uber rideshare app. Subscribers for Uber One, the company's paid membership program, jumped about 60% from the year-earlier period, topping 36 million. Those members now generate 40% of total gross bookings. Internationally, Uber said it's 'redoubling' efforts to increase its presence outside large European cities, as well as in new markets through taxi partnerships. Competition is set to heat up in the continent after rival Lyft entered new European countries through its acquisition of the taxi app Freenow. For the current period, gross bookings will range from $48.25 billion to $49.75 billion, Uber said. Wall Street was projecting $47.6 billion, according to Bloomberg-compiled estimates. The outlook includes a small bump from the completion of the Trendyol Go purchase and some currency tailwinds. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization for the second-quarter were a record $2.12 billion, ahead of the $2.09 billion that analysts had forecast. For the third quarter, Uber sees adjusted Ebitda from $2.19 billion to $2.29 billion, the mid-point of which also beats estimates. The company is also looking to monetize more of its $8.7 billion equity stakes — most of which are publicly listed — to help seed investments related to the commercialization of autonomous vehicles, said Chief Financial Officer Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah in prepared remarks. During the earnings call, Khosrowshahi laid out a clearer vision of that strategy. So far, Uber has struck 20 autonomous partnerships across its ride-hailing, delivery and freight business, including offering Waymo robotaxis on its platform in Phoenix, Austin and Atlanta. It has also invested in fleet managers that handle daily maintenance and depot operations on the ground. Those efforts are still in an early stage, but Khosrowshahi said the company will be using the initial launches to assess how much revenue each robotaxi generates on a per-day basis, so it can secure more third-party financing to scale future autonomous fleets. 'We've talked to private equity players, we've talked to banks,' Khosrowshahi said. 'While it will take some time, we're very confident that these assets are going to be financeable. And for us, we believe it's a competitive advantage for us to be able to use a relatively modest part of our cash flow to fund kind of the catalyst getting started here.' Uber will potentially invest in real estate, facilities and vehicles in the autonomous ecosystem, as it's doing in its recently announced deal with Lucid Group Inc., Mahendra-Rajah added in the call. 'This is really to help us build our learning base and to build enough information for us to be able to engage more credibly with financing partners, having run these at scale ourselves, and then be able to bring them into the fold with real data on how they can earn a return in this space,' Mahendra-Rajah said. 'That has been a pretty consistent investment approach for Uber,' he added. 'We go into markets and go into products starting at a loss, we build scale, we build our experience, and then over time we know exactly the levers that are necessary to turn to get that profitability.' Lung writes for Bloomberg.
Bloomberg
3 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
The Unintended Consequences of Trump's Tariff Strategy
Subscribe to Trumponomics on Apple Podcasts Subscribe to Trumponomics on Spotify With US President Donald Trump's self-imposed Aug. 1 deadline having come and gone, trading partners across the globe are digesting what his new threatened tariffs might mean for them. Countries like the UK appear moderately pleased with their 10% rate while nations such as Switzerland are aghast at levies as high as 39%—so much that Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter traveled to Washington to negotiate directly before they're initiated fully, which Trump promises will happen on Aug. 7. But it's early days yet in Trump's trade war, and everything from the unexpected movement of the dollar to negative jobs data and $1 trillion in trade exemptions continues to cloud the picture. On this episode of Trumponomics, we try to understand how Trump's tariffs (which, to add more complexity, an appeals court could soon rule illegal) are currently affecting US businesses, China and the rest of the world. Host Stephanie Flanders is joined Bloomberg Economics Chief US Economist Anna Wong and Bloomberg News senior correspondent Shawn Donnan to discuss it all.
Forbes
3 minutes ago
- Forbes
AI For Coaches: 5 Essential Moves To Avoid Being Replaced
Clients want outcomes. That's why they get coaching. Even if they don't know exactly what outcome, they have an idea. They want to stop feeling confused or lost. They want to be more present and less disconnected, or move from short term thinking to long term thinking. They want to make more money, easier and faster, or have more time to spend with their family. Coaches provide empathy, accountability and a sounding board, sure. But your friends can do that. Your dog can too. The coaches who survive 2025 and beyond are not the ones clinging to romanticised ideas of what a coaching relationship 'should' include. They are the ones figuring out how to get the best outcome for their clients, in the fastest and most effective way. Those in the know understand AI is coming for coaches. Here's what to do. How to survive (and thrive) in the AI era as a coach: 5 essential components If you have to be in front of your client to help them reach a transformation, your business is not sustainable. Either you'll burn out or they won't be able to afford it. Neither of you win. Most people don't need to be taught, they need to be reminded. They don't need brand new approaches, they need to take consistent action on the same ones. To scale beyond your time as a top coach, make use of AI to create digital assets. Your unique genius, accessed by clients in multiple formats (including these 10). Create mini courses, newsletters, helpful guides. Everything you recommend, every framework you follow, every question you ask. No, this is not going to replace your in-person sessions. But you'll be adding so much value around them, your clients will make progress like never before. Plus, you won't need to be on call and they get unlimited help. Create an ecosystem of upsells and downsells that scale. Start building. You are not available at 11pm or 5am. But your clients want your thoughts on their challenge whenever it crosses their mind. Be omnipresent with clever use of AI. No deception, no trickery. Upload your signature content into an AI tool that replicates you and creates an AI coaching experience. Once your client goes to ChatGPT for guidance, anything could happen. They get generic advice, questionable reframes and they go off track. But when they engage with the AI coach version of you, they hear a consistent message that keeps them going in between sessions. Leverage AI coaching, based on your methods, so your clients make progress when you're asleep. Create this weekend with a specialist tool like Coachvox. Plenty of coaches have figured out social media. They are posting regularly to win clients and have their message shared. Many aren't sharing unique messages, they're just shouting the loudest. And people are listening. Don't let less qualified coaches steal attention from you. Don't let them hook your clients. Show up on social media with the help of AI. You have everything you need in your current week. If you're creating content from scratch, you're ignoring your ace cards. Coaches delivering sessions every single week don't need to do this. Your client calls contain every question you've asked, every reframe you've given, every breakthrough you've helped someone achieve. Use this information, with permission, of course. First step: Take your (anonymised, unidentifiable) coaching call transcripts and turn them into posts that resonate with dream clients. Use ChatGPT, Claude, or your own AI. Get inside their heads and stay there. Grow on social media to attract inbound leads with people who just feel like you 'get' them. Your clients expect you to use AI. Those that are switched-on to technology know that it can enhance your memory, understanding and analytical skills. It can spot patterns, read between the lines, and see things you might miss. AI isn't your competition, it's your companion. Make use of GoogleLM, Claude Projects or OpenAIs GPTs to create client areas. Definitely (and this is important) remove identifying information. Consider using pseudonyms for each client. But don't overlook the valuable information you could gather from the words they say and the beliefs and fears they repeat. Safely and securely (and with their permission) store session information where you can ask questions of it. Get your own AI coaching assistant. Be open to learning, help your clients achieve success. You're not here to spend hours at your laptop, creating content and sending emails. Most of them are surplus to requirements. Not only can you automate your content creation, with simple automations (set up using Zapier and Make) that send data to an LLM and then to your document or social media platform of choice, but your scheduling communications can be automated too. When someone books their session, have it trigger an email sequence that reminds them how to show up, what you discussed last session, and encourages them to engage with your AI. Your job is to turn up and run the session. Use your superpowers. Be your awesome coach self, not your own marketing assistant. Stop doing tasks a robot could do. Instead, give them to a robot. Ask your VA to figure it out. Zap your way to success and free up your time. Automate the admin. AI for coaches: protect your coaching business with AI Your choice is simple. Become irreplaceable by combining your unique genius with AI. Secure outcomes for clients, faster and easier than ever before. Or lose out to AI, and other coaches that use it. Build digital assets that share your methods far and wide, then charge for implementation. Create the AI version of you as a lead magnet, or to add value to clients. Write social media content based on your transcripts, leverage AI-powered coaching for better results, and automate everything that doesn't need to be you. You'll be relieved you started today.
