Uber CEO Travis Kalanick says the company's recent holiday and seasonal promotions are an indicator of what's to come. July 23, 2013 9:44 AM PDT Uber CEO Travis Kalanick at the Fortune Tech Brainstorm conference. (Credit: Screenshot by Donna Tam/CNET) Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said Tuesday that Uber is thinking about offering on-demand service for more than just cars, and that's why it's experimenting with promotions like on-demand roses, helicopters and ice cream trucks. When asked at the Fortune Tech Brainstorm conference in Aspen, Colorado, whether or not Uber will deliver more than cars in the future, Kalanick said the company is considering it. "Yes, we're thinking about it. What we're doing right now is we're in the experimentation phase. Could it be that next summer that we just do a summer of ice cream? Sure. It's very simple," he said. Kalanick was alluding to the slew of promotional deliveries Uber did this year -- roses on Valentine's Day, helicopters to the Hamptons on Fourth of July and most recently, one day of ice cream trucks on demand. Related stories Hot startup Uber trying to be cool again with ice cream truck Moto X always-on voice commands revealed Uber introduces fare splitting for multiple passengers It's akin to the "give me what I want and give it to me now," lifestyle that people are drawn to now, Kalanick said. He said the Uber platform makes it possible, emphasizing his point by saying how easy it was for Uber to do a pop-up launch in Aspen on Tuesday. "It's a very simple platform. I called my general manager in Denver yesterday when I got into Aspen...he was able to get it up by this morning," he said. That doesn't mean the on-demand formula works every time though, he said. For example, the company tried promotional on-demand Texas barbecue orders in Austin, Texas, but found out that on-demand barbecue doesn't taste so great if it takes more than an hour to deliver.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick says the company's recent holiday and seasonal promotions are an indicator of what's to come.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick at the Fortune Tech Brainstorm conference.
(Credit: Screenshot by Donna Tam/CNET)
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said Tuesday that Uber is thinking about offering on-demand service for more than just cars, and that's why it's experimenting with promotions like on-demand roses, helicopters and ice cream trucks.
When asked at the Fortune Tech Brainstorm conference in Aspen, Colorado, whether or not Uber will deliver more than cars in the future, Kalanick said the company is considering it.
"Yes, we're thinking about it. What we're doing right now is we're in the experimentation phase. Could it be that next summer that we just do a summer of ice cream? Sure. It's very simple," he said.
Kalanick was alluding to the slew of promotional deliveries Uber did this year -- roses on Valentine's Day, helicopters to the Hamptons on Fourth of July and most recently, one day of ice cream trucks on demand.
Related stories
- Hot startup Uber trying to be cool again with ice cream truck
- Moto X always-on voice commands revealed
- Uber introduces fare splitting for multiple passengers
It's akin to the "give me what I want and give it to me now," lifestyle that people are drawn to now, Kalanick said. He said the Uber platform makes it possible, emphasizing his point by saying how easy it was for Uber to do a pop-up launch in Aspen on Tuesday.
"It's a very simple platform. I called my general manager in Denver yesterday when I got into Aspen...he was able to get it up by this morning," he said.
That doesn't mean the on-demand formula works every time though, he said. For example, the company tried promotional on-demand Texas barbecue orders in Austin, Texas, but found out that on-demand barbecue doesn't taste so great if it takes more than an hour to deliver.
