SA国际传媒

The first time I used , I had just moved to Boston for college. Far from being a luxury service, the app-turned-verb felt just as necessary to getting around the city as the T or taxis.

I, like millions of people, found comfort in the convenience of an on-demand taxi. And when there were huge discounts on the already discounted fare? Even better.

Subscribe to the SA国际传媒 Daily

However, while my first ride may have felt smooth, my feelings towards subsequent trips were complicated by Uber鈥檚 relentless pursuit of growth at all costs. After Susan Fowler鈥檚 blog post was published, I thought I knew how bad it was. But as the New York Times technology reporter epitomizes in his new book,

Convenience came at the cost of privacy; discounts at the cost of violence鈥攁ll of which is broken down by Isaac with shameless details that only someone who has covered the global ride-hailing behemoth for half-a-decade could know.

In this 345-page book, you will learn about Uber. But the corporate saga hinges on , the company鈥檚 reckless, brave, and eventually-ousted leader. Through Isaac, we eavesdrop on Kalanick鈥檚 鈥淛ampad鈥� sessions (his apartment where he brainstormed startups), stand behind Steve Jobs when he shows John Doerr the first iPhone on a sunny sidewalk, and even get eyes on the never-before-seen letter Kalanick received from the board of directors demanding his resignation. You鈥檒l learn about the powerful forces that boosted the ex-CEO up, and how few women were part of Kalanick鈥檚 rise, beyond the savagely loyal .

Taking us through the stories that the New York Times often broke itself, Isaac sharpens old news into fresh suspense. Susan Fowler鈥檚 bravery, , made me cheer; the tension with , the CEO of Lyft, made me gasp; and the details with , the founder of Uber who brought Kalanick on in the first place, reads dramatically.

Say what you want about Kalanick鈥攁nd Isaac certainly does via interviews with more than 200 people over the years鈥攂ut tech observers and this book鈥檚 readers would be hard pressed to deny the controversial ex-CEO鈥檚 former and current level of power.

After all, he didn鈥檛 just get ousted and hang up his hat. He鈥檚 currently the founder of Cloud Kitchens, an on-demand kitchen space. He also netted nearly $ from Uber鈥檚 IPO.

But for every absurd Kalanick move, I was waiting to turn to one chapter that never came: a deep dive into Kalanick鈥檚 mental health. We get stories on how his toxic behavior and party boy attitude impacted those around him, but I was left wondering a bit more about his vulnerability and possible mental health issues鈥�a condition many founders face.

Yet I don鈥檛 get the impression from Isaac he wants the reader to hate Kalanick. Nor does he want us to root for him. Instead, I sense that he wants readers to be dubious of the startups they use for convenience, and journalists to be even more skeptical of the hottest new app that might 鈥渄isrupt鈥� the world.

After all, Kalanick was only as big as the investors, employees, drivers, customers, and media let him become. And Isaac鈥檚 book, beyond Uber and Kalanick, is a tale of Silicon Valley鈥檚 culture. It鈥檚 the story of a world that doesn鈥檛 just support alpha-male white men; it rewards them handsomely, even in the face of controversy, abuse, and espionage.

But Isaac doesn鈥檛 leave his readers with that conclusion. He also provides an account of how to hold the powerful responsible, whether through the press that is out for 鈥渂lood鈥� or a single, revolutionary, blog post. A tipping point, it seems at least from Isaac鈥檚 point of view, is inevitable.

Illustration Credit: