Travis Kalanick’s Profile:
Net worth in 2018: $7.1 billion
Profession: Internet entrepreneur
Age: 42
Source Of Wealth: Co-founder of Red Swoosh and Uber
Residence: San Francisco, California
Citizenship: U.S. Citizen
Marital Status: Partner; Angie You
Education: Dropped out of the University of California, Los Angeles
About Travis Kalanick
Travis Kalanick was born in August 1976 and grew up in California. He grew up with his mother, father, two half sisters, and a brother, living a relatively normal life. When it came time to head off to college, Kalanick decided to attend the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to study computer engineering and business economics.
During his time at UCLA, Kalanick launched his very first start-up called Scour. In 1998, he left UCLA to attend his business full-time. He never returned to college to finish his studies. Instead, he hit the ground running in the world of business.
His first venture, Scour, was a project Kalanick co-founded with Dan Rodrigues, a friend of his from college. The peer-to-peer file sharing company was short-lived, however. In 2000, a copyright infringement lawsuit was brought to the company and the business partners were forced to file bankruptcy to avoid the lawsuit.
That didn’t stop him from continuing to make attempts at a successful business. In 2001, he and his colleague Michael Todd launched Red Swoosh, another peer-to-peer file sharing company. During this time, Kalanick struggled to make ends meet and moved back in with his parents. It paid off though. In 2007, Akamai Technologies bought Red Swoosh for $19 million, earning Kalanick a pretty penny.
Two years later, Kalanick was joining one of his largest projects yet. It was then that he joined fellow entrepreneur Garrett Camp in launched Uber. Uber was the first company of its kind, a mobile app that allows people to connect with drivers for hire in a moments time. The prototype for Uber was built by Camp and Kalanick was an advisor. By the end of 2010, Kalanick replaced Ryan Graves as the CEO of the company.
Now Uber is available in 66 countries and 507 cities around the world. However, it hasn’t grown to that size without its share of controversy, mainly around Kalanick’s actions.
Viral Video Controversy
About one year ago, a dashcam video was released that revealed Kalanick yelling and using profanity with an Uber driver. The driver told Kalanick that the business’ model was bankrupting its drivers. This sent Kalanick into a rage that was all captured on tape.
On Jun 13, 2017, Kalanick took an indefinite leave of absence from the company. The people who were reporting to him directly took over his day-to-day activities. Within a week, Kalanick was asked to resign from his position as CEO.
Travis Kalanick’s Net Worth
Even though Kalanick is no stranger to controversy, he has been able to obtain a net worth of $7.1 billion. That is pretty impressive, no matter who you may be. So how did he accrue this massive amount of wealth?
His 12% stake in Uber is the main contributor. The company is currently estimated to be worth $70 billion, of which Kalanick owns 12%. While his resignation was demanded by other executives, he will not lose any shares in the company.
On top of his earnings from Uber, he has also earned money through his other business ventures, including the sale of Red Swoosh in 2007. His property and other investments also contribute to his net worth as well. And, even though he’s in a low place right now, it is also likely Kalanick’s career will recover and he will find a new role in the business world. If not, it doesn’t really matter, does it? He’s got a $7.1 billion fortune to live on.
What do you think about the disgraced Uber CEO’s net worth?
Photo: CNBC
James Hendrickson is an internet entrepreneur, blogging junky, hunter and personal finance geek. When he’s not lurking in coffee shops in Portland, Oregon, you’ll find him in the Pacific Northwest’s great outdoors. James has a masters degree in Sociology from the University of Maryland at College Park and a Bachelors degree on Sociology from Earlham College. He loves individual stocks, bonds and precious metals.
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