Interview: Uber's Alon Lits and Justin Spratt

Loading player...
Thank you for listening to the TechCentral podcast. In this episode, Uber Technologies GM for sub-Saharan Africa Alon Lits and the company's head of business development for the same region, Justin Spratt, chat about the past, present and future of Uber in Africa. Listen as Lits explains how Uber got its start in South Africa, how it tackled its expansion across Africa south of the Sahara and what comes next. In the wide-ranging conversation, Spratt and Lits share insights into how the business has grown and some of the challenges it has faced along the way - not least the violence involving metered taxi drivers. The discussion talks about disruptive technologies - Spratt is not keen on the word "disruption" as he believes it has come to attract negative connotations - and how Uber is changing the way people live and travel. The discussion touches on subjects such as Uber's culture, working with regulators and the business opportunities still to come, including the potential impact of autonomous vehicles. It's a fascinating discussion. Don't miss it!
3 Oct 2017 English South Africa Technology · Business

Other recent episodes

TCS | How Optasia lends billions to people banks can’t see

Optasia will distribute more than US$6-billion in credit across its markets in 2026 – and it carries every cent of the default risk itself. In this episode of the TechCentral Show, CEO Salvador Anglada unpacks how the JSE’s biggest recent fintech listing actually works. Formerly known as Channel VAS, Optasia…
23 Jul 25 min

Everything you wanted to know about EVs but were afraid to ask

In the latest episode of Watts & Wheels with Wills, host William Kelly is joined in the studio by Greg Cress, automotive and e-mobility industry lead at Accenture South Africa, and Gary Scott of Scottify -- two of the longest-serving voices in South Africa's electric vehicle scene, and co-authors of…
22 Jul 19 min

Watts & Wheels with Wills: The rands-and-cents case for electric trucks

Aeversa’s John Ford unpacks the rands-and-cents case for electric trucks in this first of a new interview series. TechCentral is proud to present the first episode of Watts & Wheels with Wills, our new interview show about electric vehicles and the fast-changing world of e-mobility in South Africa. In the…
20 Jul 22 min

Watts & Wheels S1E7: 'Ferrari's EV breaks the internet'

Episode 7 of Watts & Wheels – TechCentral's electric motoring show – opens with mock outrage: the South African Car of the Year results are in, and the Alfa Romeo Junior didn't take the overall title. Hosts William Kelly and Duncan McLeod demand a recount – though they concede the…
8 Jul 1 hr 05 min

TCS | Pick n Pay’s Enrico Ferigolli on Penny, the AI that shops for you

Pick n Pay has switched on an AI shopping companion called Penny inside its asap! app, and in this episode of the TechCentral Show, retail executive for omnichannel Enrico Ferigolli takes editor Duncan McLeod through what it does and why it matters. Built on Google's Gemini models, Penny lets customers…
2 Jul 23 min