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A24 TECHNOLOGY
Monday 12 noveMber 2018

With Uber Eats’ fast growth comes potential for profit

By TOM KRISHER you serve from a custom- a few years, or there was
AP Auto Writer er’s home? Uber puppies and Uber kit-
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — In A: We want to make sure tens, where a car would
three years, the Uber Eats that the food arrives hot roll up and you’d play with
restaurant food delivery and delicious. If the food is some kittens in the back.
service has grown from in the car too long, that’s We did those actually
an experiment to serving bad. It’s more about the very locally. One common
much of the U.S. and major time than it is about the thread you saw is when a
cities worldwide. business because we want city, like the city of Fresno
By year’s end, the ride- that experience to be high put on the local barbecue
hailing company says it will quality. Uber has always spot that was hard to get
cover 70 percent of the believed that the faster you to, had really long lines, you
U.S. population and be in can get your ride, or your saw a lot of demand. From
243 metro areas, mainly by food, changes how con- the early days, we noticed
expanding into smaller cit- sumers think about the level that when we put popular
ies. It’s already in over 300 of convenience. So we’ve restaurants on Uber and
cities in 36 countries with been focused from the delivered them on de-
many international deliver- beginning on getting food mand, those are some of
ies done by bicycle. delivery from 40 to 45 min- our most consistently suc-
Jason Droege, an Uber vice utes (from the order time) cessful stunts. Even in our
president who leads Uber down to, I think our global marketing promotions we
Everything, the unit that This undated photo provided by Uber Inc. Technologies average is now 31 minutes. saw food and Uber had
explores how to build new shows Jason Droege, an Uber vice president who leads Uber Usually when people are some connectivity. So we
businesses off the Uber net- Everything, the unit that explores how to build new businesses ordering they’re hungry. So had some signal, but ex-
work, says Eats is growing as off the Uber network. we see that people use the perimentation is what really
fast as the ride-hailing ser- Associated Press product more when it’s de- pushed us there.
vice did in its early days. He there’s a convenience pre- have been used to ‘hey, livered faster, so we focus a Q: Is Eats a profit-making
talks about the future of the mium for people who are let’s go get groceries.’ lot on speed. entity?
service and demand for coming of age now ver- Take out has been on the Q: How did you know that A: We’re focused on
getting food delivered to sus people who already rise ever since the mid- to people would want more growth now, so we’re in-
your home. Questions and have their habits set. If you late-80s. Now you have a than pizza delivered to their vesting aggressively. We
answers have been edited look back, fast casual was generation who wants the home, was it testing? feel really good about the
for length and clarity. something that was just additional convenience. A: Sometimes we do tests economics of the business.
Q: Is there a particular de- getting going when I was Maybe they want to stay and they work, sometimes Before we went into ex-
mographic group that uses 10, 11 years old. My gener- home and watch Netflix, or we do tests and they didn’t pansion, we actually got to
Uber Eats? ation is very used to going use social media, or they work. Uber historically a point where we saw the
A: Certainly younger gener- to a restaurant and doing want the access to hun- has done stunts. Uber ice path to profitability, which
ations use it more. It’s more take out, versus maybe the dreds of restaurants. cream, where we delivered is why we decided to invest
like how they eat. I think previous generation might Q: What kind of range do ice cream on demand for aggressively.q

Facebook admits not doing enough

to prevent Myanmar violence

Social Responsibility to ity of users is seeking to use in Sri Lanka, India and else-
study the company’s role Facebook as a platform where. Late Monday, Face-
in Myanmar and released to undermine democracy book said it shut down 30
the group’s 62-page report and incite offline violence, Facebook accounts and
late Monday. including serious crimes un- 85 Instagram accounts for
It has come under heavy der international law.” suspected “coordinated in-
criticism for permitting itself The Myanmar report comes authentic behavior” linked
to be used to inflame eth- as Facebook and other so- to foreign groups attempt-
nic and religious conflict cial media companies face ing to interfere in Tuesday’s
in the country, particularly a trove of problems in deal- U.S. midterm elections.
against minority Rohingya ing with people, groups Facebook and smart-
This Feb. 19, 2014, file photo, shows a Facebook app icon on
a smartphone in New York. Facebook is admitting that it didn’t Muslims. The report con- and nations intent on using phones entered Myanmar
do enough to prevent its platform from being used to incite firms this and offers recom- their services for malicious quickly, and the report
violence and spread hate in Myanmar. mendations, including pre- reasons, whether that’s in- notes that this has led to a
Associated Press paring for “massive chaos citing violence, spreading “steep learning curve for
By BARBARA ORTUTAY should do more” to protect and manipulation” in the hate messages, propa- users, policymakers, and
AP Technology Writer human rights and ensure it country’s 2020 parliamen- ganda and misinformation civil society.” The report
NEW YORK (AP) — Face- isn’t used to foment division tary elections. or meddling with elections notes that Facebook “is the
book is admitting that it and spread offline violence “Facebook has become around the world. internet” for many in Myan-
didn’t do enough to pre- in the country, Alex Warof- a means for those seeking Facebook is focused on mar and that it has played
vent its services from being ka, a product policy man- to spread hate and cause rooting out misinformation an important role in sup-
used to incite violence and ager, said in a blog post. harm, and posts have been in the U.S., but it’s also deal- porting freedom of expres-
spread hate in Myanmar. Facebook commissioned linked to offline violence,” ing with people using its sion and helping activists
The company “can and the nonprofit Business for the report says. “A minor- platforms to incite violence organize. q