In 2007, the crash had Wall Street and Silicon Valley reeling. The original renegades like Steve Jobs were now the establishment, and tech had become a way of life for suburban moms as much as for visionaries. The Valley was ready for a new revolution. Enter THE UPSTARTS. Genius entrepreneurs with no lack of self-confidence created companies that turned our expectations on their heads. Travis Kalanick of Uber and Brian Chesky of Airbnb are just two of the disrupters Brad Stone examines in this fly-on-the-wall look at the intersection of tech, business, and culture. With unprecedented access to all the key players, Stone illuminates the smart, driven, and often comically flawed people who are upending industries and changing the way we all live and work.

Discusses the radical companies of the new Silicon Valley that are rewriting the rules of business and sidestepping ethical and legal obstacles in the process. --Publisher "Ten years ago, the idea of getting into a stranger's car, or walking into a stranger's home, would have seemed bizarre and dangerous, but today it's as common as ordering a book online. Uber and Airbnb have ushered in a new era: redefining neighborhoods, challenging the way governments regulate business, and changing the way we travel. In the spirit of iconic Silicon Valley renegades like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, another generation of entrepreneurs is using technology to upend convention and disrupt entire industries. These are the upstarts, idiosyncratic founders with limitless drive and an abundance of self-confidence. Led by such visionaries as Travis Kalanick of Uber and Brian Chesky of Airbnb, they are rewriting the rules of business and often sidestepping serious ethical and legal obstacles in the process. The Upstarts is the definitive story of two new titans of business and a dawning age of tenacity, conflict, and wealth. In Brad Stone's riveting account of the most radical companies of the new Silicon Valley, we discover how it all happened and what it took to change the world."--Dust jacket.