Uber Acknowledges Nasty Ploy to Sabotage a Competitor Employees at car service Uber ordered -- and then canceled -- over 100 cars from a New York competitor called Gett and then attempted to poach its drivers.

By Geoff Weiss

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Uber

Uber's voyage to revolutionize the modern transport model and topple a budding crop of competitors has lately been a bumpy ride.

Rival car company Gett says Uber employees in New York ordered and then canceled -- in some cases, at the very last minute -- more than 100 cars last week, resulting in a disruption of its service. After receiving the Gett drivers' cell phone numbers from the orders, an Uber employee texted the drivers in an attempt to poach them from Gett.

"Our local teams can be pretty determined when spreading the word about Uber," Uber acknowledged in a blog post, adding that its actions against Gett were "too aggressive." The company claims, however, that it paid cancellation fees and that Gett's drivers lost no time as the requests were canceled immediately. Gett denies both claims.

"We collected contact info and canceled within seconds," Josh Mohrer, Uber NYC's general manager told Entrepreneur. "This had nothing to do with sabotage."

Related: Uber Deepens Discounts on Its UberX Service

Gett, for its part, does not seem to be taking the incident sitting down. In a blog post on its website featuring a battle still from the movie Braveheart, the company -- which launched exclusively in New York last August -- thanked its users by offering them a discount code and pleaded, "We need your support now more than ever."

Gett said that it was evaluating its legal options.

This isn't the only bad press currently surrounding Uber and its polarizing co-founder and CEO, Travis Kalanick. In addition to a lawsuit by its drivers who allege the company is stealing their tips, the company will soon face its first wrongful-death lawsuit after an Uber car tragically struck and killed a 6-year-old girl in San Francisco on New Year's Eve.

Related: How to Outwit Your Competition

Geoff Weiss

Former Staff Writer

Geoff Weiss is a former staff writer at Entrepreneur.com.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Business News

'Everyone Can Profit From It': What Is DeepSeek? China's 'Cheap' to Make AI Chatbot Climbs to the Top of Apple, Google U.S. App Stores

DeepSeek researchers claim it was developed for less than $6 million, a contrast to the $100 million it takes U.S. tech startups to create AI.

Business News

'I Love Doing Product Reviews': Bill Gates Stepped Down from Microsoft in 2020, But Admits He Still Spends 15% of His Time Working at the Company

In a new interview with the Wall Street Journal, Gates also said he is still close with Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella.

Business News

Elon Musk's DOGE Is Hiring People Eager to 'Work Long Hours' to Eliminate 'Waste, Fraud and Abuse' in the Government. Here's How to Apply.

The Department of Government Efficiency is hiring U.S. citizens to help cut spending and headcounts in the federal government.

Business News

Uber's CEO Says Drivers Have About 10 Years Left Before They Will Be Replaced

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi says the jobs of human drivers are safe for the next decade, but after that, another type of driver will take over.

Leadership

Strong Leaders Thrive in Complexity — Here Are 5 Leadership Level-Ups for 2025

Leadership isn't static. It's a journey of continual learning and evolution. Here are some lessons for leaders this year.