Transcript
Live from deep in your sock drawer. It's a Tuesday, Uber nugget edition of business plan is always by Emma Trend spotting lurking and Matt TSR moscati. I'm all about the team. I'm a very dusty wind. Sure, I like that in today's farce shaped bag of igloo size nuggets, called July 12th 2022. Uber sucked even more than we knew and Nuggets nuggets nuggets. Come on. Let's do it. I get stuck all the series today. I don't understand you guys get the four round. Depressed you get you depressed, everybody. And then actually what we did was give you the story that's breaking that I'm I mostly think is like, you know, excellent news from five. Okay. So that both of you feel free to interrupt me as I tell this story because I'm more interested. Yeah, we have problems into more interested in the conversation. Who were the headline, Uber broke laws, duped, police, and secretly. Lobbied governments leak reveals. Okay, so the unprecedented League to the guardian. Of more than 124,000 documents known as The Uber files. We have another file. It's like it's exciting and there are files. I like getting what the face gonna be papers and now it's the Uber files. Yeah, I like papers better like files. If I'm rating what I want more of I want more papers and less files. I agree. Well to be fair to you idiots. These are not papers, they're files. They're they're data files. Oh yeah. No, the the Panama papers were were all in paper form. Yeah, sure. Okay. So these these this document dumplings bear. The ethically questionable practices, of course, that fuel the Uber's enormous growth. The leak span to five year, period. When the company was running by one of his co-founders, Travis kalanick probably the one of the most despicable people in our world, right? Like he's in the Bobby kotick category of of discussing. Would you agree? Is he Bhabhi KO, tickle. Yeah, I was reading some of the I was reading the guardian New York Times articles from 2017. when he was forced out of the company that he founded by his major shareholders and there's a lot of heinous stuff that was involved with Uh, there's just like sexual harassment and mismanagement of rape trials, and, and breaking luck. Just a lot of nasty stuff going on. Was Travis did Travis participate in the actions? Or was he just complicit in allowing them to happen to others? I think it's all the above. I mean, you know, he was there was tape. Remember him back in the day, braiding a driver, there's all kinds of. He's just a what he I think he's the the more aggressive youthful version of Bobby kotick. Let's just say okay. Just what we need. Leaked messages suggested, Uber Executives were at the same time, under no Illusions about the company is law breaking with one executive joke and they had become Pirates. And another conceding were just fucking illegal. And let's and I I remind you, Matt. The reason why I guess you should be interested in. This is the This is not. Secondhand information. This is, these are actual documents leaked from. The work at Uber. We don't get we don't get a look into this very often with actual emails. What's that message is? This isn't you know, disgruntled employee saying things. It is a disgruntled employee. Okay, at all, stop it. Doesn't matter. It's still firsthand information. I'm just saying is this new firsthand? What does it have to be so new? Yeah, it is a lot of. Okay, I'll tell you. Yeah, Emma. I I agree Damian with you, I think that this little tidbit in particular, I know that Matt's all blase and I don't care and it's so five years ago. But the fact that these men the highest ranking Executives at this company were so relaxed. About running a company. A legally that they were joking about it via email. Imagine like we're doing something illegal. We could go to jail. Haha we're Pirates. Let's be honest demo. I just The level of entitlement is getting me out. I don't know if that if you squint, Matt really looks like a Silicon Valley, Travis Clinic. The only reason why you're not as you seem to have filled with us. Like, where is our rapid growth? Where are steak was made? Where is our 200 investment? I want the creative team to grow. Where are you Travis? Scotty? You know, my my background, my background in deep. AI learning is really set us back. Oh wait, I have a background music. That's why we picked up early. Yikes. Look, I think if you I think the thing about this story that's interesting is if you replace The name Uber and Travis with any Silicon Valley startup like if it was Zuck and Facebook if it was Holmes and theranos if it what I mean, like it's all the same story. It's we do not care about the implications or the legality of what we're doing. We do not care about whether or not we hurt people. Incidentally, along the way, we do care about growth at all costs, and will fix it later on when we get here. That thing here, more importantly, because once you're, there is customers are going to be pissed when When and then fix it later because I mean because otherwise that's the mentality joining. Facebook. Now knowing what? They knowing what they knew. Wait, what? You know what I'm saying? A lot of people knowing like what I know and one exchange Travis dismissed concerns from other Executives that sending Uber drivers to a protest in France, put them at risk of violence from Angry opponents in the taxi industry. Here's the quote from Travis, I think it's worth it violent guarantees success, meaning success for Uber. So He wanted. violence against his drivers, because all right, Travis you gone over to France and you experience some violence and we see how you Like this one, the Uber files also show that the companies use of stealth technology to thwart government investigations was far more expensive than previously reported company. Executives, activated a so called kill switch to cut access to company servers and prevent authorities from season evidence during raids on Uber offices in at least six countries. Come on, Matt, this is real, this is real stuff here. Yeah. I mean Google has like secret servers on China and like, I don't know, everybody's a league criminals. Yeah, they're all, I think, I think that they're all, you know what I mean? Like, in some, in some way to do, what they like these companies, do these Silicon Valley companies achieve There is almost always like some level of legal line that they have to come near or cross and then they pay a fine and okay, that's the real problem different. That's the real problem interplay between government and here because with the actual evidence of wrongdoing criminality, maybe maybe something. Maybe the hammer can come down on a company like uber. Maybe you can finally be an example of The founder fetish gone too far. One more tidbit, Uber offered shares to Media bearings for political help. So they would actually be offering shares. to Media companies, to, to help promote their bulshit, you know, Matt you about to say something, I just think the interesting tidbits in the story are the reason why it gets it got picked up in the guardian and in Lamar write papers were late to the garden. But the files, the, the, the the, the French angle is macron's directly involved, right? Like he is A sitting president. Now who was a minister who gave favors to accompany? We don't for political purpose, we don't know what yet the favors are. There's an exchange in there, a directly texting, then Minister Finance mccrone during the violence and protests in in France where France suspended Uber from its services. Travis reached out saying you do something about this macron went and talked to his buddies and then like hours later or something happened. It does that sound Vaguely Familiar to Zuckerberg getting grilled in front of Congress goes to dinner with Trump and like everybody is a little bit hunky-dory. You know, anybody knows what handshake agreement or wink Winx happen if any right but we assume they happen but this is like a pattern. This is a repeating pattern. It's not gonna and it's not one party. It's not like the the problem is you cannot regulate these companies if they are intertwined with government handouts and subsidies like no one. No One's Gonna bother regulating social media out of existence, which should absolutely happen when they generate too much, in the way of sort of political advantages. And its already, he's already riding that horse because he, first of all, he was already unpopular with the non-french elite for being this kind of corporate person like he's been forever on popular because of this. And today he's already coming up saying. Yeah he's not dissing so far. He's like yeah I'm proud of my conversations with Executives at corporations because they bring jobs so he's already playing it that you know, he's doing good for his countrymen even though they all seem to hate him even though he likes it a lot. Um, So before I wrap up that those files more than 180 journalists of 40 media Outlets including Lamont, Washington Post BBC will in the coming days publish a series of investigative reports about these files so I don't know, maybe there's more coming. Let's see what it is, Matt. You alluded to The Whistleblower or The Whistleblower was the former top lobbyist in Europe over Mark McGann. There's an interesting little side note here. Where Uber said that he waited To be a whistle until after receiving his bonus check. Yeah. But then the guardian of course, comes out and says, actually Uber's a liar because again, contacted the guardian five months before his settlement was reached with the Uber. So Uber still lying. It looks like The question, the lingering question that would make this story. Interesting, is whether They're currently Executives at Uber who were there then and now, and whether the management team is largely intact, including let's talk about it. So and we let's talk about that part. I have some data for you on that colonics, step down as CEO in 2017, that made the that was big news. Because he was a reprehensible a-hole. Forced out poster, child for being a reprehensible a-hole. But you know what? He stayed on the board for another two years. This is the Ludacris of what you're referring to Matt. It it's ludicrous to me that that they so called distance themselves from him. And yet let him remain with all of his influence. All of his power. All of his co-founder Jews, keep the state on the board for two. Years, and only left. Seemingly when he was ready to leave, he announced his retirement 8 days before. December 31st, 2019. And he went out in a high saying he's proud of all. The Uber has achieved CEO. Dara said that Very few entrepreneurs have built something as profound as Travis did and enormously grateful. Chair Ron sugar said. He wanted to thank Travis. So it's all a bunch of bulshit honestly. And I mean, sold all shares. He's a hope this. I hope if someone comes down on Uber, if there is some kind of, like, look, claw back or reparations, I don't know. I don't know what's gonna happen but that they realized that Uber Uber never really. This isn't themselves from him. That there are there are still six directors. Currently on the board who served with colonic win the company ipo'd Six, including the chair Ron sugar and including two directors that Travis Clinic designated himself. He appointed Ursula Burns and John Payne. He designated them as directors to Uber and they're still sitting there. There are also here's where it gets a little weird. there are still several Executives, who are still on the board since the IPO, but then when we looked at the website of uber, we looked at all 11 executive, For some reason they stripped from their bios when they joined Uber, I don't know, like a 30. Yeah, I don't know, like they're playing a game. I think they're probably playing a game directly with us because we're the only one, two are actually Beyond like just reporting the story but we can't actually from their information. We are unsure who was brought up by Travis. Who was a Travis friend? Who's still there? We do know. That the two people who have dates are Gus folder, vice president of safety and core Services. He joined in 2013 and actually, a Frenchman who is a senior vice president of delivery who joined in 2012. He was a vice president of rumors ride, hail of Uber's ride-hailing business, outside of North America so he could be complicit in a lot of this. So I'm before I wrap up on this, I'm expecting it a minimum for their to be a hell of a lot of additional turnover here. Right? I mean can't we at least expect that like these people cannot remain can they can even can run sugar survive. This, how does he survive this? Why does he survive? This? We also know that Jill Hazel, you just want to say hazel Bakery? His name is relatively fake, according to her, Google or LinkedIn profile joined Uber in 2015, which means LinkedIn. She's currently the head. Yeah. She's the head of public Affair. He was appointed. I mean, what we know Dara, Uber put out a statement that said, 90% of the employees that Uber are not the same employees as when this happened, when, when Travis over the employees who are like, putting out muffins, they're probably not that I'm interested in the 10%, right? The 10% appear to be of the 11, we can quickly Identify two at least, but maybe three or four who are still there. And my guess is, if an investigative journalist gets deep, the 10% of the people who are still in charge. Well, let's not forget like, even the connections that are pretty apparent. the CFO who was also there at the IPO when Travis was on the board and Nelson chai He was at CIT group with John Payne. There were both in senior Manager Management there. So clearly there's a there's a direct connection to Travis there, I mean absolutely direct connection. And there's there are a number of connections that we can make because I know Ron sugar is connected back to Uber and John Payne and a number of others who are on the board because he's one of the most connected board members in the world. This is not exactly the group of people. When you say, 90% of the company is different and that cultural stuff is behind us, which is every Uber press release so far. Like, you know, it's all behind us, we are focused on the Uber of now, not the Uber of yesterday, that's what they're saying. Except that the Uber of yesterday largely runs the Uber of now. So right, like Jeremy knew a couple people, maybe new, but they're all interconnected back. That's the important. Yeah, that is when you start talking about claw backs and government, you know, interplay macron president. Now people in Uber who are here. Now, we're dealing with macron then and now, right, like, it's not like a new Thing, that's where it's interesting to me because of the growth stuff. The illegal stuff that's less interesting than the people. Yeah. So I think Uber you can't, you can't play that game. You can't play like oh Travis is gone. It doesn't. It's just not that simple. So stop it. Stop it. Yes, stopping. All right, I'm assuming more will come out of this will keep falling the story. So why don't we? Try to have some fun now. Come on. Yeah, grab bag by our resident asshole and chief today. Me, I'm doing your nuggets today. Ready for this. In our new ammunition, purchasing laws, could kill your pets, says bombs and ammo, monthly magazine headline of the week. New ESG rules are hurting American farmers, says, oil, price.com or price.com. Will price.com apparently doing journalism. Quote from the article, the rule will force farms and ranches to adopt more rigorous reporting regimes which could weigh on their bottom line. Yeah, there's really talking about calm giant corporate Farms, they're not talking about Mom and Pop Farms, Know. They framed it as like Josh in his backyard and his rigorous reporting regimes, okay? NR I had to buy an extra seat on my Delta flight to Boise. And now this headline of the week, Pregnant woman fights 215.00 fine for driving alone. In carpool, lane claiming her unborn child counts as a passenger. Report says hmm. I like that. I like this. I like this a lot because it's way closer it's closer to my I had to get an abortion for self-defense. I thought about that. But you know what you're missing here. Let's get back to the flight. Delta flight, do you know that he throwed a day? Put out a letter. Saying. Stop it. We're limiting passengers. Stop booking so many flights, guys. How happy I am? Actually go go. I've been waiting for this all my life. He throws. This is one of the busiest. Airports. In the world is like stop it. Yeah, go home. Yes. In their correct. you know, if I put a bed in the bathroom, it counts as a bedroom now, right? Headline of the week. Google proposes moving add business to alphabet to keep regulators. Wait, yeah Google's idea for for the Department of Justice antitrust review is to move, its ad auctions from Google, a wholly owned subsidiary of alphabet to alphabet, the parent company of Google. Okay, what? I don't even know the difference is, I'm not even just solve for, I don't solve it. They take away that you do anything, right? Am I missing? I don't know. It's you're not missing a thing. Just laughing the joke move on. I did see, you know. Did you remember the measuring tape, honey? Look every time a black guy gets beat up and I want a live stream, it on a Zuckerberg property, for future appeal of the oversight board. You leave the damn measuring tape. Next to the couch headline of the week, Arizona makes it illegal for bystanders to record cops at close range. What does close? What is close range? In case you're wondering, close range is 8 feet or more or less feet or less feet too close. Which means can you imagine? Like they're actively beating on a minority? You're trying to live stream it and someone gets out the measuring tape and says you need to back up or I'm going to find you. That's the way that works that I don't like anymore. I refuse to believe that that will stand in real life. It'll stand. It's a real law know it's a real law, okay. Since you're so upbeat today in our Where did I put that list of my rights? Oh, here it is. Life liberty, happiness, stake, and same day delivery for Rubber Chickens headline of the week. Morton's, has been flooded with phone calls and fake reservations after it said, Brett Kavanaugh had a quote right to eat dinner without protesters Gathering outside. That was their fault. Yeah, I mean, he's fault, they had using the word, right? They deserve it. I don't know what they were thinking. I think they were thinking that their on Brett Kavanaugh's. Side of this political argument as my guest. Because that's, it's a, they had to know that this was coming. I think they just want everyone to have the right to eat steak quietly at their expensive Steakhouse. It's all probably. That's, that's a fundamental, right? Oh, but not, if you can't afford it and or nobody, so, moving on in our Wait. We sell chicken now since when Oh, you mean we're one of the largest chicken. Producers, where the hell have I been? Am I right? Headline of the week, Tyson Foods Works to fix its chicken operation, fix it, that's gross. Still, I know what? Think about think about the positions there. This is like the Burger King story. Now the food is Natural 27% of their sales are chickens and efforts to date include things like raising chickens better, killing chickens better, and selling chickens that are terrible. Stop it. I like this. And then, finally, in our chewy, grab bag of Biz nuggets. Hey, shout out to Damien in our, hey, Ma Spaceship in the odd. Tell Dad. The week one in 10 chance of casualties, from out of control, rockets falling to Earth. Over next decade, 1 7 5. Where did you get this one from? This is this is from nature or Smithsonian but a real magazine and a fun fact, the largest owner of satellites primary source of rockets Elon Musk and SpaceX. Okay, that's, that's your chewy growth. That's about this. I'm just thinking about me, I don't care about any of you. I I spend a lot of time now in my backyard. It's my I got a new hammock. Just I've got some of these gravity chair. Like I'm I am prone for a rocket to follow me. Like I every weekend. I'm out there with a book, it's ridiculous. It's Gonna be Me order on Amazon. Yeah, you can order on Amazon, a rocket repelling on a giant bill for me now to Emma for our Trend. Come on, Emma Trend nugget. Here are your tread nuggets. Here we go. Hey, this is sort of a trend, dumpster dive nuggets hybrid. Here we go. Number one in our, I hope it stays offline forever, now that the directors of the Secret Service is its Chief security officer. Why does Snapchat keep logging me out issue? Users report issues with appla login. So people are currently very upset about not being able to log on to Snapchat when I check the Google translate today. It was a lot of Snapchat which I really have very little else to say about this. Just Snapchat that's it in front of my face and I'm sure people were Googling, it's not down. Why won't snap work Snap Chat, login, busted and other things like that but I would point out that they have a 10-person board in three women on their board. So they 30%. Oh congratulations. All appointed by Evan Spiegel directly. I'm sure because he owns voting rights. Absolutely number two, moving on, in our finally, a fast food headline that isn't about. Travis Scott or tacos on cheeses headline of the week. No, Subway. She's in tacos. We just stop it. Oh, it's all, it's really it's on the cheese, okay? Yeah, Damien Subway is giving away one million free sandwiches today. Here's how to get one, you know. So, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. today, the first 50 Subway customers? Get a free 6 inch sub and they get to choose from 10 options. Yeah, it's 50 free sandwiches, okay. Yeah, so here's here's the kicker for me. I actually happened to be in a Subway recently. Did you know that a footlong is a footlong? No drink, no cookie, no chips, nothing. A footlong is 1069 more than double its previous. Five foot five dollar foot long price and a six inch isn't even five dollars anymore. A six inch sub is 729. Okay, where were you the Upper East Side? Like where were, you know, I was around the corner from my shity little Lower East Side apartment. Stop it. You're on the island with the highest real estate. Probably in the world. Top 10, it's still shity. Have you been there? You've been, there is like a stop it. Stop it. Just stop, just stop. He actually, has anybody measured the line? That's where we're going. Or is it going here? I was really hoping that the length was like five inches on the second measuring sandwich. I want you to buy. 26 inch subs, and do the average length of a 6 inch sub and more importantly, I'm a, what are you doing? You live in New York City near a Subway. I mean you should be I was not purchasing the subway. I am going to throw my roommate under the bus know really, is Subway trip that. I was a complete talked about. We talked about your roommate, by was your husband been in a coma for 47 years. Like, what's the, what's going on here? I got ramen sandwich at a boat digest, Ramen of all places Manhattan, especially, like, below 14th Street. That is like, sandwich, Heaven. I mean, it is like Delica test, it was not, it was 9 p.m. It's always comes down to the try. So he's going to Subway in Manhattan map. What are we talking about here? But anyway, the point is there. Yes, the point is that I am just made by these prices and it was the most jarring display of inflation that I have seen. It was like inflation jumpscare, okay, the other Sammy notable thing here is that Subway is switching their business model and the whole thing about how you get to customize your sandwich, make your own sandwich, that's not their priority anymore. They said in a statement that they are asking customers to trust their culinary expertise and no artists to create a sandwich Subway believes customers will enjoy But is there a sandwich bank CD, do you think or a sandwich? Like like what does the Sandwich Artist? Hey Damien might be one. Yeah, I will say this lunch like because they know it's over. Yeah, no. It's getting close to being over once Jared went to jail for pedophilia. Then you it's over. I mean, it's oh, and their food sucks. It's over okay, moving. And finally number three in our nothing can be unproblematic headline of the week. The James Webb telescope's. First photos show its extraordinary power. Okay. So don't ruin this for me. Yeah the photos are awesome. Photos are really awesome. My favorite which I included just for you to gaze at is the Karina nebula which is all of the new baby stars that had been born not that long ago and behind bars the quintet the Galaxy 5 Galaxys crashing into one of another photo. That one was my favorite. I have green peppers on that one. Yep, you can know that you have to trust The Culinary expertise of the James Webb. So The. It's my joke about nothing being unproblematic. This tell us what is problematic. Do it ruin it after James Webb that a former NASA Chief who was a homophobe? It is pretty well, documented based on a piece written by Corner that would say who wasn't a homophobic back. Then it's an excellent point but he was in management and in meetings where it is, been documented that people were plotting the lavender scare of the 1950s 1960s and he heard that one. Yes. So the lavender scare was a period of time in the 50s and 60s where the federal government was purging anyone with lgbtq. Identities out of government. They just might want to do that. Okay, what else, what else should we hate about this telescope? Don't hate. So you should also hate about this. What you should also hate about this telescope is who it was manufactured by. It was a jointly manufactured by three Aerospace or defense company and I'm gonna go I think I'm gonna go from best to worst Corporation. Number one was the Ball Corporation. They used to make glass jars in like teachers stuff. Yeah, I like their job. They don't own their jars anymore. They sold their jarring. Okay. Jars. I don't care. Make telescopes, apparently, and sustainable aluminum cups for Jason Momoa. What do you think about? Know this is the least bad. This is good to tell you. At least that ones I want to hear about the bad ones. Know, I don't know. I want they have, I want, I want to feel good about it. Almost have gender, parity on their board, 12 board members, five women, not bad. Oh wow, congratulations about corporations, not bad. I like you. Yep. And then, there is L3 Harris, which is a 13 person board, 30 women, male CEO. They also helped manufacture this telescope. And they are currently trying to buy the Israeli spyware company that sold its know, click spyware products to governments that are targeting activist politician politicians journalists this was in the news a little while ago about how all these people were being targeted by this. No click spyware and this is the company that was doing it and this company wouldn't sell their spyware to the Ukraine, but they did to Russia. So thank you all three. We agree that having three women on the board is the new like having one woman on the board. It's like it doesn't feel token to you when you only have three women. Like because it's It, it correlates with the academic research that we sold a lot of msci, right? That I mean literally it's our fall three for a good blame. Anybody stopped at three so I and then they were like threes enough call it all. We got three women Now worse than two women. Is that possible? We need to. Know, it's not I think it is, but we we need, we need to update. The academic research is what needs to happen. Where we need to say. Now, you need 50% of your board to be women or four. Whichever is great was the same with someone right these? Some of these, some of these advocacy groups, God bless their their souls. Which remember, they were fighting for like 30% women on board, 30 for 30. Yeah. Really you? Trip on 30% women. All right, go. All right well now that you've said that we'll see how you feel about this the final and worst of the manufacturers is it Northrop Grumman. Nobody might have heard before and giving your three women argument, they have four women on their 13th person board and a female CEO. Yep. Yep. Which is a paradox here because I had there were so many scandals for this company. I literally could not choose one to highlight. They were named the biggest water polluter of American corporations in 2019. They've gotten fined for breaking Like rules and regulations. They stolen data from other governments they've like on and on and only three years ago. So maybe it's not all her full No, stop it. She there the Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics, and Boeing and caterpillar are some of the most intertwined, incestuous group of companies in the entire world. Literally, you can name a director or an executive at one and chances are they've either had coffee and Bong rips. They've had sat on each other's boards. Were Executives at each other or go to middle school with one another. It's like they all know each other. They're all terrible. We know about that. All. But yeah, so those are your three beautiful, wonderful companies who built your beautiful, wonderful telescope, who is what is that's named after a beautiful wonderful homophobe. So, shut your face. Look at the beautiful. I like that, I like that. You ruin that but I don't, but this whole you going to Subway is it's gonna haunt me forever. Good. I want to haunt you today. I also think there's a secret agenda to elevate Taco Bell over Subway with that story. So, um, because we know Emma's favorite, that's all we have. That was a way too long, show to catch up on the news in, like, 700. But it's a catch up, Damian Ross and Emma Larkin. And Matt Scotty, we are free float media. This was business pants, go rate It, Go review it because you don't do those things and I hate it. I ask you all the time he never do it, just do it. Give us the five stars and write a review that says my mom loves your show because we know she does otherwise we'll be back tomorrow with woke Wednesday. Goodbye.