Uber is acquiring Blacklane

The deal, financial terms undisclosed, expected to close by end of 2026, arrives weeks after Uber launched its own Uber Elite chauffeur service and positions the ride-hailing giant as a serious player in the corporate and executive travel segment.

Uber has agreed to acquire Blacklane, the Berlin-founded global chauffeur platform, in a move that accelerates its expansion into premium and executive travel.

The acquisition, announced Monday, is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close by the end of 2026. Financial terms were not disclosed. Blacklane was last valued at $547 million in a funding round in October 2024, according to PitchBook.

Founded in Berlin in 2011 by Dr Jens Wohltorf, Blacklane operates in more than 500 cities across over 60 countries, connecting business and leisure travellers with independent local chauffeur services through an app and web booking platform.

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Its investor base reflects the corporate travel market it serves: backers include German rental car company Sixt, Mercedes-Benz, and ALFAHIM, a UAE-based conglomerate. The company has raised more than $100 million in total and has established itself as the default chauffeur provider for many of the world’s largest corporations.

The acquisition arrives directly on the heels of Uber’s own Uber Elite launch, announced a few weeks prior. Uber Elite offers a high-end chauffeur service with in-vehicle amenities, airport meet-and-greets, and 24/7 phone support, currently live in Los Angeles and San Francisco with New York City next.

Blacklane’s established global footprint and corporate client relationships give Uber an immediate scale advantage in the segment that Uber Elite is still building from scratch. Pre-booked Uber Reserve trips have become one of the fastest-growing parts of Uber’s mobility business, and executive travel is a market Uber has been signalling as a strategic priority.

Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber’s CEO, said the company wants to offer “the widest selection of options to meet our riders where they are: from the everyday commute to luxury rides.”

Wohltorf described the deal as “a powerful step-change in introducing our service to new markets globally.” For Blacklane, which has spent 15 years building a high-end alternative to mass-market ride-hailing, being absorbed by Uber is a significant exit and a distribution bet: access to Uber’s platform of 202 million monthly active users could take the chauffeur model to a new scale entirely.

This is Uber’s third acquisition announced in 2026, following its deal to acquire quick-commerce platform Getir for $335 million and its agreement to buy parking platform SpotHero. The pattern reflects a broader Uber strategy of using acquisitions to build out adjacent verticals rather than waiting to compete organically.

The Blacklane deal extends that logic into premium mobility, a segment where margins are higher, customer loyalty is stickier, and the competitive moat is harder to replicate quickly.

Story by Ana-Maria Stanciuc

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I am the Editor in Chief for TNW, covering technology not as a parade of launches and valuations, but as a system of influence, persuasion, (show all) I am the Editor in Chief for TNW, covering technology not as a parade of launches and valuations, but as a system of influence, persuasion, and change. I write about startups, venture capital, digital policy, and Europe ecosystem, with an eye on the larger story beneath them: who gets to build the future, who profits from it, and how Europe is learning to speak in a louder voice of its own. Before moving into senior editorial leadership, I've built my career for over +10 years across journalism, storytelling, content strategy, SEO, and digital publishing, with experience in SaaS, hospitality, art, and culture.