Uber Said to Pick Expedia CEO to Lead Company Out of Crisis

Uber Technologies Inc. will appoint Expedia Inc.’s Dara Khosrowshahi as chief executive officer of the global ride-hailing leviathan, a person familiar with the matter said.

The Expedia CEO is set to succeed co-founder Travis Kalanick, who grew Uber into a $20 billion annual booking business last year, only to resign as CEO in June under investor pressure. Uber and Expedia didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Khosrowshahi will face a number of hurdles as Uber -- which has raised more than $15 billion from private investors -- navigates its way toward a still-unscheduled initial public offering. The new top executive must grapple with the company’s persistent losses, a high-stakes trade secrets suit filed by Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo, a tarnished brand and low morale among Uber’s more than 15,000 global employees.

Uber’s board met over the weekend for a last round of interviews with candidates and to discuss the options, said people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations were private. 

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. CEO Meg Whitman gained support from some board members after presenting her vision for the company on Saturday, despite repeated public denials that she would take the job, but she ultimately lost out.

General Electric Co. Chairman Jeffrey Immelt was another finalist but failed to win the board’s full backing. He withdrew his name Sunday morning in a Twitter post.