Variable-Cost Model Makes Uber's Loyalty Perks Uniquely Difficult to Build
Andrew Macdonald (Mac) · Uber President on Travis, China & Self-Driving | Why Autonomy Is Existential | How to Beat DoorDash · Aug 17, 2026 · at 9:54
Andrew Macdonald (President & COO of Uber) explains the structural difficulty of designing Uber One rewards compared to fixed-capacity models like hotels.
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“The beauty of our model is we're primarily a variable cost model, right? It means when demand drops, great, our costs scale down with it, but it also means that we just don't have a fixed capacity to give away, and so it just makes the challenges for building a membership or rewards program a little tougher for us.”
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