Former GE CEO Jeff Immelt says he will not become Uber's next CEO

pulse

August 27, 2017 4:32 PM

Uber's board has been divided into factions over this choice, and the infighting has been epic.

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Uber apparently just lost its front-runner for the vacant CEO job.

Former GE CEO Jeff Immelt tweeted on Sunday that he's withdrawing his name from the hunt, saying he has "immense respect for the company and founders."

Multiple sources report that Uber is voting on the new CEO Sunday.

Uber's board has been divided into factions over this choice, and the infighting has been epic.

I have decided not to pursu... @ Jeff Immelt

The board had reportedly narrowed the search down to three people, with different factions backing different candidates. Immelt was a top candidate, and he reportedly had the support of Uber's former CEO Travis Kalanick and his faction.

Kalanick remains on the board but bowed to investor pressure and resigned from the CEO role in June after numerous scandals rocked the company, ranging from accusations of sexual harassment to a lawsuit over Uber's self-driving technology.

Another main candidate, HP CEO Meg Whitman, was backed by Kalanick's opponent, Benchmark. She has publicly bowed out of the running, too, though sources close to the situation say her faction was still hoping to lure her in.

But a third candidate also spoke with the board this weekend. Sources told Business Insider that this person is the head of Amazon Web Services. That's presumably Andy Jassy.

It is not yet clear whether the third candidate won the board vote and will announced next week ... or if the search — and the infighting — will continue.

Uber could not be immediately reached for comment.

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