When people think about the technology entrepreneurs who changed the way we travel and discover things online, names such as Garrett Camp often come to mind. But searches for tom kennedy and garrett camp also bring attention to the wider world of entrepreneurs, innovators, and business leaders whose careers have developed alongside the rapid growth of modern technology.
Garrett Camp is best known as the Canadian entrepreneur who helped create Uber and co-founded StumbleUpon. His career, however, extends far beyond the ride-hailing company. From building an early social discovery platform to creating a startup studio and launching a private aviation company, Camp has continued experimenting with new ideas long after stepping away from Uber’s daily operations.
Understanding the entrepreneurial journey surrounding names such as tom kennedy and garrett camp provides an interesting look at how technology founders can move between different industries while continuing to build new businesses.
Who Is Garrett Camp?
Garrett Camp was born on October 4, 1978, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He studied software engineering at the University of Calgary before entering the technology industry.
Rather than building his career around a single company, Camp has repeatedly moved between different areas of technology and business. His work has included internet discovery, transportation, startup investing, and private aviation.
Although Uber became the company most closely associated with his name, it was not Camp’s first major entrepreneurial project. His earlier experience with StumbleUpon helped shape the approach he later brought to other ventures.
Today, Camp is based in Los Angeles and continues to work through companies and investments connected to technology and entrepreneurship.
Before Uber: The Story of StumbleUpon
Long before smartphones became central to everyday transportation, Garrett Camp was working on a different problem: how people discover interesting websites.
In 2001, Camp co-founded StumbleUpon, an online discovery service designed to introduce users to websites based on their interests. Instead of requiring people to search for something specific, the platform allowed them to explore the web and encounter content they might otherwise have missed.
The idea became particularly notable during the early growth of social media and user-generated content. In 2006, Camp moved the company to San Francisco, placing it closer to the growing technology ecosystem in Silicon Valley.
StumbleUpon changed ownership several times during its existence. Camp eventually bought back majority control in 2015. By 2018, the original service had evolved into a new venture called Mix.
The experience gave Camp more than a decade of experience building a consumer internet product, managing teams, and thinking about how technology could influence people’s everyday behavior.
How Garrett Camp Came Up With the Uber Idea
The story behind Uber began with a relatively simple frustration: getting a ride when transportation was difficult to find.
Camp and Travis Kalanick reportedly once spent around $800 on a private driver during New Year’s Eve. The unusually high cost made them think about whether technology could make on-demand transportation more accessible.
Camp had also experienced difficulty finding a taxi during a snowy night in Paris. The combination of expensive private transportation and unreliable taxi availability eventually contributed to the idea of using smartphones to connect passengers with drivers.
The concept was straightforward for its time:
- Use a smartphone to request a ride.
- Connect passengers with available drivers.
- Make transportation easier to access.
- Use technology to simplify payment and the overall experience.
Camp and Kalanick began developing the concept, with Oscar Salazar and Conrad Whelan also contributing to the early technical development.
The company initially launched in 2009 under the name UberCab. In 2011, the name was shortened to Uber following concerns from San Francisco taxi operators.
This early concept eventually developed into one of the world’s most recognizable transportation platforms.
Garrett Camp’s Role at Uber
While Travis Kalanick became the company’s most visible leader, Garrett Camp remained an important figure in Uber’s early development.
Camp was involved with the company as it expanded beyond its initial concept and became a much larger technology business. Kalanick eventually became CEO, while Camp continued to contribute as a board member.
The distinction between the two founders is important when looking at Uber’s history. Kalanick became closely associated with the company’s aggressive expansion and day-to-day leadership, while Camp increasingly focused on other entrepreneurial projects.
Camp eventually stepped away from Uber’s board in 2020, although he has continued as a board observer.
The story of tom kennedy and garrett camp may lead readers into different areas of entrepreneurship, but Garrett Camp’s own career demonstrates how a founder can move from one technology idea to another while remaining involved in innovation.
Life After Uber
Camp began moving away from Uber’s daily operations well before the company became publicly traded.
In 2013, he founded Expa, a startup studio designed to help entrepreneurs develop and launch new companies.
The concept behind Expa reflected lessons Camp had learned from both StumbleUpon and Uber. Rather than simply investing in established businesses, the studio was designed to work closely with founders during the early stages of building a company.
Over time, Expa raised hundreds of millions of dollars and supported a variety of startups.
One example was Reserve, a restaurant reservation service that was later acquired by Resy. Projects such as these demonstrated Camp’s continued interest in creating and supporting technology businesses rather than remaining focused exclusively on Uber.
Aero: Garrett Camp’s Move Into Private Aviation
One of Camp’s most interesting later ventures is Aero, a private aviation company designed around semi-private jet travel.
Aero began operations in Europe in 2019, initially connecting destinations including Mykonos and Ibiza. The concept was different from traditional commercial airlines and traditional private-jet chartering.
Instead of requiring passengers to charter an entire aircraft, Aero sells individual seats on smaller private-style aircraft. The company markets the experience as an alternative for travelers who want a more private and premium flying experience without arranging a full aircraft charter.
Aero later established its base at Van Nuys Airport in Los Angeles and expanded its network.
Its destinations have included locations such as Aspen, Los Cabos, Sun Valley, Napa, New York, and Maui. The company has also expanded its operations with larger Gulfstream IV aircraft and introduced a Dallas hub serving destinations such as Aspen and Los Cabos.
Aero’s Expansion in 2026
Aero continued expanding in 2026.
For its fifth anniversary, the company announced plans to launch flights connecting Miami and Los Angeles beginning November 19, 2026. Flights between Miami and Aspen were scheduled to begin December 17, 2026.
The expansion represents another stage in Camp’s efforts to build businesses around premium transportation and travel.
It is also an interesting contrast to Uber. Uber focused on making on-demand transportation available through smartphones, while Aero operates in a much more premium segment of the transportation market.
Both ventures, however, reflect an interest in changing the way people experience transportation.
Garrett Camp’s Wealth and Philanthropy
Garrett Camp’s success with Uber has made him one of the wealthiest technology entrepreneurs in Canada.
A significant portion of his wealth has historically been connected to his stake in Uber, while his other businesses and investments have contributed to his broader business portfolio.
Camp signed the Giving Pledge in 2017, committing to donate at least half of his wealth to philanthropic causes during his lifetime.
His philanthropic activities have included support for organizations working in technology, social impact, and charitable giving. The Camp Foundation has also supported Every.org, a platform that helps nonprofit organizations receive donations through different forms of payment, including cash, stock, and cryptocurrency.
A Low-Profile Technology Entrepreneur
Despite helping create one of the world’s most recognizable technology companies, Garrett Camp has generally maintained a lower public profile than many other Silicon Valley entrepreneurs.
He rarely seeks the same level of media attention associated with some technology founders. Instead, his career has increasingly focused on building companies, supporting entrepreneurs, investing in new ideas, and exploring industries outside traditional software.
That makes Camp’s career particularly interesting. His entrepreneurial path has moved from web discovery with StumbleUpon, to transportation with Uber, to startup creation through Expa, and eventually into aviation with Aero.
For readers researching tom kennedy and garrett camp, the broader lesson is that modern entrepreneurship can take many forms. Founders may create one successful technology company and then use the experience, capital, and networks they develop to explore entirely different industries.
What Garrett Camp Is Doing Today
Garrett Camp’s current activities are centered largely around entrepreneurship, investment, and his portfolio of businesses.
Expa continues to serve as a platform for developing and supporting startups, while Aero represents his involvement in the premium travel sector.
His career also illustrates how the technology industry has evolved over the past two decades. StumbleUpon emerged during the early social web era, Uber grew alongside the smartphone revolution, and Aero is now exploring a more personalized approach to air travel.
From an early website-discovery project to one of the biggest transportation startups in the world, Camp has repeatedly focused on finding ways technology can change familiar experiences.
Final Thoughts on Tom Kennedy and Garrett Camp
The story of tom kennedy and garrett camp sits within a much larger conversation about entrepreneurship, technology, and innovation. Garrett Camp’s own journey is especially notable because his career has crossed several very different industries.
He helped create StumbleUpon when discovering websites was still a very different experience, contributed to the early idea that became Uber, founded Expa to help other entrepreneurs build companies, and later entered the aviation industry through Aero.
Although Camp is not as publicly visible as some of his fellow technology founders, his influence can still be seen in businesses and products that have changed how people discover information, travel around cities, launch startups, and experience air travel.
His story ultimately shows that entrepreneurship does not necessarily end when a major company becomes successful. For Garrett Camp, Uber was one of the biggest chapters of his career—but it was far from the final one.
