Travis Kalanick, the CEO of online ride-sharing company Uber, said in a Munich conference that the company could open up 50,000 jobs in a "new partnership" with cities in Europe.
Kalanick stated his intention to rapidly expand Uber throughout Europe, despite criticisms fired against the company from established taxi companies and transportation regulators.
Uber was formed with the intention to help users connect with drivers that offer taxi-like transportation services through their smartphones. The company, which was launched four years ago and now has operations in 250 cities around the world, is currently valued at around $40 billion, according to the latest round of fundraising from the company's investors.
However, Uber has received accusations of undermining competition, and of not implementing sufficient checks to ensure that users are safe with the drivers and vehicles registered under the service.
Uber has received court injunctions within European countries Belgium, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and France. In London and in other major cities, the company has also been the subject of protests by taxi companies.
In United States courts, a woman from India that was reportedly raped by a driver for Uber has filed a lawsuit against the company.
Uber has responded to some of the criticisms on the company with a combative stance, with the CEO frequently voicing out his own criticisms of the red tape and regulations implemented by cities that Kalanick says only protects the taxi companies.
However, despite the recent controversies, Kalanick said in the recently held DLD conference for the industries of media and technology that Uber has a commitment to the establishment of new partnerships with cities in Europe "to ensure innovation, harness powerful economic benefits and promote core city functions."
Kalanick also acknowledged that there is a need for regulations on safety checks for the company's drivers, adding that it was previously "easy to say something flippantly negative about every law."
He added that Uber is currently negotiating with governments for new regulations that will ensure the safety of the public, thriving competition in the industry and growth in the tax revenue and economy of each location where Uber is operating.
Kalanick also revealed that the company has new technology tools under development that will lead to safety improvements for its users, with additional background checking on drivers and better communication between the service and the authorities.
The CEO of Uber also said that city governments that choose to allow the ride-sharing company to freely operate will see thousands of jobs created, and high revenues collected from taxes, adding that the company's expansion will take 400,000 personal vehicles off of the road.
