![Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber by [Isaac, Mike]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51LJ8ZQT6hL._SY346_.jpg)
Halfway through and yes, it's quite remarkable. It is like the author was hiding behind doorways in some conversations.
So far, and admittedly I haven't seen all of it, I think it feels fair and even-handed, not over-sensational.
The writing is also very good -- fast reading and I'm finding myself obsessed with this story.
Hard not to compare it to Bad Blood, equally juicy. The difference is that we all saw this -- we were all riding Ubers and loving the convenience and celebrating the fact that is has transformed urban transportation.
And we all knew someone who worked there and hated the culture -- but who wanted to stay to cash out.
Will update more in a day or two, with more thoughts and details.
UPDATE: <100 pages to go
I am obsessed with this book and the story. I find it so amazing that such a large, transformative company was run just so poorly. I'm at the point where Bad Boy Travis is taking a break from the company -- and I do feel sorry for him, up to a point. I don't feel sorry for the enablers -- some whom I think Isaac let off pretty lightly. In fact, many of the characters he describes show up (at least up to this point) as quite admirable, such as the CTO Thuan Pham, among others.
I cannot wait to talk about this book with friends and observers. I am less sanguine that it cannot happen again, and again and again, because the whole startup/crazy money chasing the next big thing/bro culture has no reason to change.
UPDATE: finished the book and just raced through toward the end. I think everyone interested in startups/disruption and tech in general should read this book, for what it says about the whole cycle of money-funding-new-ideas.
Was riveted by the ins and outs of Benchmark's actions and how one of the most founder-friendly firms in Silicon Valley, could push out a CEO who controls the shares and the board!
Yes, I loved reading the book but am saddened the the problems will not go away because there's too much money sloshing around looking for the next big thing, with investors all FOMO about the next bro startup. Kalanick, who Mike Isaac described as having a philosophy of "Ayn Rand meets Wolf of Wall Street," is part of the system, not an outlier. Susan Fower's "very strange year" at Uber is happening again in firms all over, venture firms are ignoring women founders, and tools like AI propogate the same old ideas. Sigh.
Still, it's great to dissect how this very visible company jumped the shark, and keep the conversation going about how Silicon Valley, innovators, and investors can do much, much better.
OK, sermon over.
Thanks for reading.
- File Size: 3393 KB
- Print Length: 410 pages
- Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1 edition (September 3, 2019)
- Publication Date: September 3, 2019
- Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
- Language: English
- ASIN: B07PZ2B85Y
- Text-to-Speech:
Enabled
- Word Wise: Enabled
- Lending: Not Enabled
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,720 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
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