Uber Applied sciences Inc. has named Balaji Krishnamurthy as its new chief monetary officer, succeeding Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah, SEC (Securities and Trade Fee) regulatory filings present.
Krishnamurthy, 41, has held a number of management roles since becoming a member of the corporate in 2019, most not too long ago serving as vice-president of strategic finance. The transition comes because the ride-hailing large prepares for a capital-intensive shift towards autonomous automobile (AV) integration.
The management change arrives as India solidifies its place as Uber’s third-largest market. In 2025, customers in India logged 11.6 billion km on the platform. Whereas Uber has softened its electrical automobile (EV) ambitions within the US, it continues to take a position closely within the Indian market, not too long ago finishing a second funding in Carrum, the CarDekho Group–backed fleet startup, Mint reported earlier. This regional divergence highlights Uber’s technique of pursuing electrification within the rising markets, whereas prioritizing autonomous software program within the Western territories.
Uber not too long ago additionally acquired Belgian startup Segments.ai, which focuses on high-precision data-labeling and multi-sensor annotation, that are vital for coaching the AI fashions that energy self-driving programs. By integrating Segments.ai into its Uber AI Options division, the corporate is considerably increasing its skill to course of LiDAR and digital camera information in-house. This transfer goals to scale back the guide effort required to “educate” autos the best way to navigate complicated city environments, transferring Uber nearer to its aim of facilitating AV journeys in 15 cities by late 2026.
An identical technique is at play in India, Mint reported earlier.
The AV plan influence
Wall Avenue reacted to the information with warning, as shares fell roughly 6% on Wednesday morning. The decline adopted an SEC submitting that exposed a weaker-than-expected revenue outlook, which the administration attributed to elevated spending on AV infrastructure.
Krishnamurthy, who holds a board seat on the autonomy startup Waabi, is anticipated to supervise a extra aggressive funding section. This week, autonomous driving startup Waabi secured $750 million and partnered with Uber.
In the course of the December quarter earnings name, chief govt officer Dara Khosrowshahi outlined a roadmap to facilitate AV journeys in 15 world cities by the top of 2026, with a aim to guide the worldwide AV market by 2029. Khosrowshahi famous that autonomy is anticipated to “amplify” the corporate’s current logistics community, regardless of the speedy stress on margins.
Krishnamurthy additionally stated the corporate plans to spend money on its AV software program companions, work with AV makers by investing fairness or through offtake agreements, and “assist” the AV infrastructure companions.
The corporate reported a 20% income enhance to $14.37 billion for the quarter, pushed largely by meals supply demand. Nonetheless, the incoming CFO emphasised that future free money move could be directed towards “positioning Uber to win” within the driverless sector, suggesting a pivot from speedy revenue maximization to long-term technical infrastructure.