Uber co-founder and university alumnus visits campus

Budding entrepreneurs had the opportunity to hear a homegrown success story from one of the university’s most notable graduates, Garrett Camp, BSc’01, MSc’06, a Canadian entrepreneur, designer and alumnus who was on campus Nov. 17 as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Camp, who is best known for Uber, the app-based on-demand car service he co-founded in 2009, spent about two hours at an Up Close and Personal event hosted by The Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. More than 140 students and members of the community were invited to engage with Camp and Conrad Whelan, BSc’02, MSc’05, Uber engineering manager and fellow Schulich alumnus, in a question-and-answer session, and a private reception that followed.

“We were pleased to welcome Garrett back to the University of Calgary to engage with our campus community,” says Elizabeth Cannon, president and vice-chancellor. “He is an inspiring example of what can be achieved when we empower our students with the energy and ambition to unleash their potential.”

Key is developing product you want to use yourself, says Camp 

Cannon moderated the discussion, which centred on Camp’s experiences at the University of Calgary, launching his first tech startup company, StumbleUpon, while in graduate school, and what the young entrepreneur looks for when nurturing a new idea or developing a product.

“Fundamentally, I want to build a product that I want to use myself," says Camp. "Will it make my life better and will other people want to use it? If I don’t want to use it myself, then I’m not going to be excited about it, and then work becomes work and it’s not fun."

Camp says Uber was a product he co-developed out of his negative experiences waiting for taxis in San Francisco, where he now lives.

“I was frustrated that they would never show up. I would be standing there watching these cabs go by me and think, ‘these cabs are empty, why are they not stopping? They are not coordinated at all!’ I remember one day — after watching James Bond and seeing him tracking his car on his phone — I was looking at my iPhone, waiting for the cab company to call me and I thought, why can’t I just push a button and they would come? And that was the initial idea.”

Talent and passion are ingredients to being a successful entrepreneur

That initial idea led to Uber, which despite its controversy, now operates in 65 countries and is said to be valued at approximately $50 billion.

Camp remains as Uber’s board chair, but has left the day-to-day operations. In 2013, he launched Expa, a platform for developing new companies. His latest venture, Operator, helps users find the products they are looking for by connecting them with experts who will find it for you.

Camp left his audience with a parting message on the key ingredients to becoming a successful entrepreneur.

“Talent is important, but the passion is just as important," he says. "If you’re really excited to solve that problem, you’re going to stick through that multi-year period where you’re not going to get any traction, and half the people say it’s a stupid idea. If you’re less likely to use it yourself, you’re not going to stick through those tough times.”