To Make Amends, Uber Looks Ahead, and Facebook Looks Back
*By Madison Alworth*
Uber's new [national TV ad](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMZyw5lPKgE) doesn't tout new services or offer limited-time discounts. This minute-long video makes a solemn promise, from Uber's new CEO himself, Dara Khosrowshahi, "to always do the right thing."
It's part of Uber's effort since Khosrowshahi took over last August to present the company as a better, more caring corporate citizen of the world. After years of bad news about Uber's cutthroat strategy to grow at any cost, this ad represents a carefully crafted pivot.
"I do think its effective," said Jon Swartz, a senior reporter at Barron's. "I actually think of it as kind of a State of the Union address from Dara."
Khosrowshahi inherited from the founder and former CEO Travis Kalanick a company dealing with investor lawsuits, a federal investigation into stolen trade secrets, and software used to hide its vehicles from law enforcement. Not to mention an incriminating video of Kalanick [berating an Uber driver](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-28/in-video-uber-ceo-argues-with-driver-over-falling-fares). The advertisement serves as a reset of public expectations.
"I think what Dara is doing is really, really good," said Swartz. "In fact, what he's doing is he's starting his administration, so to speak, on a positive angle."
Uber is not the only company looking to publicly make amends for past transgressions. Facebook has also released an advertisement, ["Here Together,"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4zd7X98eOs) which promises a return to what users may have first liked about Facebook.
Swartz said the Facebook ad is different from Uber's because the social media company is in a different stage of the so-called public apology tour.
"The difference between the two is that Uber is trying to take a first wave of the new administration and set a precedent," Swartz said in an interview Thursday on Cheddar. "While Facebook is kind of retrenching and trying to correct what has been a problem and what will continue to probably be a problem when we hear about other data breaches or problems that occur there."
It remains to be see how the public ー and investors ー will respond to the companies' new promises.
"I think there's this general sense that tech is not well liked throughout the rest of the country," Swartz said, adding that these ads cold have a broad impact with consumers who have impressions of the companies shaped by what they hear as much as what they experience.
"You're resetting the company and its expectations, because again, in Silicon Valley, the companies are reflected by their CEOs," Swartz said. "That's the personality of the company, whether good, or bad, or indifferent."
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/silicon-valley-is-sorry).
As the Leonardo DiCaprio-backed, pure-play electric vehicle company Polestar plans to close a SPAC IPO with Gores Guggenheim, CEO Thomas Ingenlath talked to Cheddar about how the company positioned itself to be able to go public. With competition tightening in the electric vehicle sector, Ingenlath noted what differentiates his cars from the competitors. "Scandinavian cool design and of course the road to zero emissions is something that we take very, very seriously," he said.
Bitcoin is slowly coming back to life after plunging recently, but everyone's favorite cryptocurrency needs to chart a 77% rally in the next four weeks to reach the widely forecast year-end value of $100,000. Bitcoin was trading more than 0.8% percent lower on Thursday morning, Ethereum was also declining. David Nage, portfolio manager at Arca, joins Cheddar News to talk discuss the market.
Jack Dorsey is stepping down as CEO of Twitter. In a statement, he says he is leaving because the company is ready to move on from its founders. Twitter's chief technology office Parag Agrawal will take over as CEO. Ian Sherr, editor at large at CNET, joins Cheddar News to talk about the announcement.
Visitors in Santa Monica are now getting a whole new look into the new metaverse world. Starting on December 1st, the Downtown Santa Monica District Is Getting Fully Immersed in AR and VR. It's All in Partnership with 'Flick Play' which is the first-ever 'Play to Earn' Metaverse App that Basically Takes the Gamification of 'Pokemon Go' and combines It with more social aspects of an App like Tiktok. Founder of the FlickPlay App Pierina Merino, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
On a platform as massive as TikTok, there are bound to be some negative implications. While we know that social media sites can have harmful health effects for teens and adolescents, the research on TikTok's health effects is slim to none. Skye Barbic, assistant professor at the University of British Columbia joins Cheddar News.
If your kid was on Santa's "nice list" this year, maybe you're willing to shell out $1,900 for Tesla's new Cyberquad. The automaker's all-electric ATV for children 8 years old and up is available to order now and is expected to begin shipping in two to four weeks.
Grab, a Southeast Asia-based ride sharing, e-wallet, and delivery service, made its public debut on the Nasdaq via SPAC merger. CFO Peter Oey joined Cheddar's Brad Smith to talk about the IPO and why it was an ideal time for the company to go public. Oey noted that while Grab operates in 465 cities in eight Southeast Asian countries, there is still more opportunity to grow and expand while balancing profitability and growth.
Voltus is going public by combining with a special purpose acquisition company, Broadscale Acquisition Corp., in a deal that values the electricity market technology startup at about $1.3 billion dollars. The company aims to deliver less expensive, more reliable, and more sustainable electricity to its more than 600 customers, including Home Depot, Coca-Cola, and Simon Property Group. Gregg Dixon, co-founder and CEO of Voltus and Andrew Shapiro, chairman and CEO of Broadscale Acquisition Corp., joined Cheddar News to discuss the deal.
On this episode of Cheddar Innovates: Kemtai Co-Founder breaks down how computer vision and artificial intelligence can improve your workout form; Wove Co-Founder explains how it's creating a one-of-a-kind engagement ring design process; A look at Curiosity Stream's 'History By The Numbers.'
Mike Telem, Co-Founder at Kemtai, joins Cheddar Innovates to discuss how the platform is using computer vision and artificial intelligence as a virtual personal trainer through a laptop's camera, and how this technology can be adapted for physical therapy.
