The Next Big Thing for Uber

Uber Technologies is doing everything it can to save its customers time, but for CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, the company’s sixth annual Go-Get event in New York City was something of a trip through time.

On Wednesday, Khosrowshahi and other members of Uber’s leadership team unveiled a slew of new features, and also announced Hotels on Uber, a new hotel-booking feature that works in concert with Expedia, a company for which Khosrowshahi previously served as CEO. The feature allows users to book hotel rooms directly in the Uber app, similar to how they’d hail a ride or order food through Uber Eats.

Khosrowshahi said that travel was Uber’s “next frontier,” and that “taking all of the complexity” related to booking travel “and making it as easy to get an Uber” was “only natural” for the company. 

“You can go, you can get, and now you can travel,” he said during the event, adding that the partnership with Expedia—which will list some 700,000 hotel properties through Uber’s platform—is “the perfect marriage.”

Additionally, Ariane Gorin, the CEO of Expedia, made an appearance, reiterating how natural a fit it is for the two companies to work together. “Where Uber can take you, we can help you stay,” she said, adding that the combined powers of the two companies can, ultimately, “save people time and money.” Separately, Uber announced that every single property on VRBO, a vacation rentals site, will be on the Uber platform later this year. Booking hotels through Uber could also net discounts and Uber One credits for members.

Overall, saving time was the overarching theme of the event. The company also rolled out these new features.

• Eats for the Way: The ability for users to preorder coffee, tea, or a snack with Uber Black in some markets.
• Travel Mode: A new “experience” within the Uber and Uber Eats apps that offers up recommendations, depending on where, specifically, the user is. For instance, travelers in a new city will get restaurant recommendations, points of interest, and even a new “room service” feature allowing them to order Uber Eats directly to their hotel room.
• Shop for Me: Shop for Me allows users to request goods or items from any store out there—not just the ones that are on the Uber platform. The app will find a courier who then goes out and gets the item, no matter how specific.
• Cart Assistant: An AI-powered feature allowing users to create shopping lists from image uploads or text prompts. It can work within a certain budget and develop meal plans as well.
• Voice Bookings: Another AI feature that debuted was the ability to book rides with verbal prompts. For example, a user could say out loud, “Book me a ride to the airport with enough room for five people,” and an AI assistant will make the necessary arrangements. 

In all, it’s a push for Uber to become an “everything” platform and squeeze into competing spaces, particularly in the travel-booking industry. The partnership with Expedia—and the upcoming partnership with VRBO—shows that the company can carry weight in the space, with the new features making it easy for users to book nearly everything they’d need on a trip in one place.

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