Uber Becomes the World’s Most Valuable Startup
Uber, the four-year old startup running a popular driver-fetching app, has completed a round of funding that values the company at a stunning $18.2 billion. The deal has made Uber the world’s most valuable startup followed by Airbnb, Dropbox and Xiaomi at valuations of $10 billion each.
Uber’s app, which enables anybody owning a car to offer taxi services, is not only extremely popular but also quite controversial. The company has repeatedly come under fire for violating local taxi laws and its dynamic pricing model has sparked a social media outcry after prices rose to astronomical levels during a snow storm in New York City last December.
Despite all controversy, the company’s investors appear to be optimistic about the viability of Uber’s business, which reportedly generated more than $200 million in revenue in 2013.
