Uber Makes Its First Acquisition

Uber, the popular private taxi service, has reportedly bought the mapping and search startup deCarta, the company’s first acquisition. According to Mashable, Uber acquired deCarta for an undisclosed sum. The deal, which is expected to close this week, is all about deCarta’s talent and technology, sources said. 

The San Jose startup, founded in 1996, offers a platform that specializes in mapping, local search, geocoding, and turn-by-turn navigation. deCarta is also offering SDKs for mobile and automotive applications, and its APIs are developer-friendly.

According to Mashable, 30 out of 40 employees at deCarta will continue to work for the company once the deal is closed. This includes deCarta CEO, Kim Fennell, who has yet to confirm the acquisition. Uber tells Mashable that deCarta’s platform will be used internally and that the company will continue to operate as a subsidiary.

The acquisition is surprising, considering Uber’s view on mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Uber CEO, Travis Kalanick, famously said that his company hasn’t acquired a single company because it is focused on the product. What is clear, however, is Uber’s massive expansion around the world.

Uber raised a whopping $1.6 billion in January, valuing the company at $41.4 billion, making it the second most valuable startup in the world today next to Xiaomi. An Uber representative told Mashable that the deCarata acquisition will allow Uber to fine-tune its products and services that rely on maps such as UberPOOL and more. The deal will make the Uber experience even better for our users, the representative said