What would you do if someone offered you $1.8 million to sabotage Uber?

That’s exactly what happened to Eric Wimer, one of the early operators at Uber, who helped launch and scale the Philly and Vegas markets from scratch. In this episode of The Early Pod, Eric reveals the untold story of the bribe, the chaos of the early days, and the wild tactics Uber used to win — including creating a fake limo company to outsmart corrupt regulators.

This is one of the most entertaining behind-the-scenes startup stories you’ll hear — filled with lessons on grit, leadership, managing through uncertainty, and betting on yourself.

We cover:

• Why Philly’s taxi industry offered Eric $1.8M to take Uber down

• How Uber secretly launched a shell company to flood supply

• What it felt like operating in legal gray zones at age 23

• The power of Travis Kalanick’s leadership and internal culture

• How Eric turned around the Vegas market and brokered deals with top hotel groups

• His biggest management mistakes — and how he got better

• What he’s building now with Sway, a returns and delivery startup

• Why trusting your gut is one of the most underrated founder skills

If you love war stories from the frontlines of iconic startups — this one’s for you.

🎙 Hosted by Max Crowley, early Uber employee and founder of The Early Pod.

Timestamps:

00:00 – The $1.8M bribe offer

04:00 – Cold emailing Ryan Graves to land the Uber job

08:00 – Launching Uber Philly with zero cars

12:00 – Creating a fake limo company (Gaggen LLC)

16:00 – Outmaneuvering the Philadelphia Parking Authority

20:00 – Workation, Travis speeches, and the Uber culture

28:00 – Transitioning from IC to manager

34:00 – Fixing Vegas: From Uber Chopper to hotel deals

41:00 – Being true to your gut & reversing big life decisions

48:00 – Life coaching, inner work, and building Sway

52:00 – Advice for aspiring founders

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🎧 Listen to the full episode:

🔹 Spotify: https://earlypod.com/spotify

🔹 Apple Podcasts: https://earlypod.com/apple

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