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    Summary and Analysis of The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley are Changing the World: Based on the Book by Brad Stone
    Summary and Analysis of The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley are Changing the World: Based on the Book by Brad Stone
    Summary and Analysis of The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley are Changing the World: Based on the Book by Brad Stone
    Ebook50 pages37 minutes

    Summary and Analysis of The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley are Changing the World: Based on the Book by Brad Stone

    By Worth Books

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    About this ebook

    So much to read, so little time? This brief overview of The Upstarts tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Brad Stone’s book.

    Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader.
     
    This short summary and analysis of The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley Are Changing the World includes:
     
    • Chapter-by-chapter overviews
    • Character profiles
    • Detailed timeline of events
    • Important quotes
    • Fascinating trivia
    • Glossary of terms
    • Supporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work
     
    About The Upstarts by Brad Stone:
     
    Brad Stone’s The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley Are Changing the World is a detailed account of the founding of Uber and Airbnb, as well as each company’s climb from small startup to transportation and hospitality powerhouse.
     
    The Upstarts provides insight into the early lives of entrepreneurs Travis Kalanick and Brian Chesky, including their forays into new business ventures, some successful, most of them not. Stone points out the amazing parallels between the two tech companies as they fight for startup capital, wrestle to find the right framework for their products and organizations, and bring in the talent and technology needed to support those offerings.
     
    The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
     
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOpen Road Integrated Media
    Release dateMay 16, 2017
    ISBN9781504046473
    Summary and Analysis of The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley are Changing the World: Based on the Book by Brad Stone
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      Book preview

      Summary and Analysis of The Upstarts - Worth Books

      Contents

      Context

      Overview

      Summary

      Timeline

      Cast of Characters

      Direct Quotes and Analysis

      Trivia

      What’s That Word?

      Critical Response

      About Brad Stone

      For Your Information

      Bibliography

      Copyright

      Context

      Airbnb and Uber—which have forever changed how we travel and where we stay when we do—could never have gotten off the groundwithout several other technical innovations, the two powerhouse apps

      The first technological leap came in 2007, when Steve Jobs introduced Apple’s first iPhone, then announced that it would run mobile applications from third parties. That meant any company could automatically do business with any customer who owned an iPhone. At the same time, Facebook’s user base was growing. The online identity created on that social platform could be used to verify both consumers and hosts or drivers of the two upstart companies, and to rate them. And then Google Maps emerged around the same time. A smartphone app that could guide you wherever you wanted to go, it could also be used to find a nearby Airbnb lodging, or let an Uber driver take you to your destination without needing directions from anyone else.

      With all these three in place, users of Uber and Airbnb could enjoy seamless, cashless transactions in which neither the host, driver, customer, nor passenger ever have to handle money or calculate a tip. All were empowered by the open ratings system—for instance, an Airbnb host could see if someone was a terrible tenant, or an Uber passenger could avoid a bad driver. Most important, anyone could drive or be driven, rent or travel, whenever they wanted and on whatever terms. Suddenly, the largest hotel chain in the world operated without owning a single piece of real estate, and the largest taxi fleet on the globe didn’t need a garage. Airbnb and Uber rode these technology waves to become two of the fastest growing startups in history. In just eight years (2008 to 2016) Uber’s valuation reached $68 billion; Airbnb reached a $30 billion valuation, more than any hotel chain.

      Thus began a sharing economy that has changed the way we live—but not without controversy. In early 2017, after the publication of The Upstarts, Uber’s brand was rocked by accusations of widespread sexual harassment at the company. In addition, Uber and Airbnb have prompted questions about labor laws, housing laws, what an independent contractor is, and how to define a business. Some people claim the companies have given them extra income—others claim that the companies have taken away work that is rightfully theirs. As the valuations

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