Uber CEO admits 'we've got things wrong' in open letter

Uber is in conciliatory mode, at least in London.

After Transport for London (TfL) stripped the car-riding app of its licence to operate in the UK capital, the CEO Dara Khosrowshahi penned an open letter in the Evening Standard in which he acknowledges mistakes were made and apologises for them.

"While Uber has revolutionised the way people move in cities around the world, it's equally true that we've got things wrong along the way. On behalf of everyone at Uber globally, I apologise for the mistakes we've made," he said.

"We will appeal this decision on behalf of million of Londoners, but we do so with the knowledge that we must also change. As Uber's new CEO, it is my job to help Uber write its next chapter."

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That Uber is willing and ready to strike a deal with TfL was also clear from this comment that Tom Elvidge, Uber's general manager in London, told The Sunday Times: “We’d like to know what we can do . . . to sit down and work together to get this right.”

It seems a totally different reaction from last Friday, when Uber reacted to the surprise TfL announcement by threatening court action and slamming Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

The company also launched a petition to "Save Uber" that was signed by more than 750,000 people.

Khan, who supported TfL's decision, wasn't happy about all this pressure.

"What you can't do is have a situation where unfair pressure is brought on a quasi-judicial body, where there are officials working incredibly hard," he said, according to the BBC.

"I appreciate Uber has an army of PR experts, I appreciate Uber has an army of lawyers — they've also made aggressive threats about taking us to court."