Who would have guessed that Uber was operating a data-labeling platform? And until Meta’s recent acquisition of Scale AI, how many people even knew what data labeling was? While Uber hasn’t disclosed exact revenue from that arm of the business, its advertising division is now generating $1.5 billion annually—and it’s only just getting started, with ad types soon expected to cover the cost of user rides.

Uber’s advertising business is clearly a major driver behind the company’s rising cash flow and profitability. Despite lingering concerns over autonomous competition from Waymo and Tesla, Dara Khosrowshahi is delivering a masterclass in maximizing core operations while scaling adjacent ventures.

Note: Lyft also recently announced similar new ad types at Canne.