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By Eric Newcomer

August 10, 2018 at 11:00 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Travis Kalanick loyalists experienced some serious schadenfreude this week after Uber Technologies Inc. lost a showdown with New York.

In 2015, Kalanick scored his most pivotal policy victory in New York when the then-upstart ride-hailing company faced down de Blasio and won. Back then, Kalanick pulled out all the stops. The company launched an aggressive television ad campaign, held rallies with riders and drivers, and redesigned the Uber app to show a dystopian vision of New York without Uber (wait times: 25 minutes). Kalanick played a central role in that winning campaign, with the help of political fixer Bradley Tusk and New York general manager Josh Mohrer. It was an overwhelming show of force. De Blasio backed down. Uber has increased its number of drivers about fourfold since then.