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- A large indoor party where guests weren’t wearing masks was reportedly held at ex-Uber CEO Travis Kalanick’s New York City penthouse in September.
- In a story featured in New York Magazine’s The Cut, writer Cat Marnell describes attending the party, saying there were “tons of people there, and of course no one was wearing a mask.”
- Kalanick did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment on the event, but a representative told The Cut that “he had lent his apartment to a friend and was unaware of the party.”
- Vanity Fair reported earlier this year that Kalanick hosted an outdoor party at his Los Angeles home when such gatherings were restricted due to a surge in coronavirus cases in Southern California.
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A large indoor party full of maskless guests was reportedly thrown at Travis Kalanick’s New York City penthouse in September.
In a new story from New York Magazine’s The Cut, writer Cat Marnell describes being invited to a party at Kalanick’s apartment by a friend. When she arrived, she said, “There were tons of people there, and of course no one was wearing a mask.” Marnell said the hosts were playing lounge music, she was asked to remove her shoes before entering, and that “everyone was drinking red wine, ‘adulting.'” After sitting down on the couch, Marnell was immediately kicked out of the party, she said.
Experts say private indoor gatherings where attendees are not wearing masks are currently one of the main drivers of coronavirus transmission. In September, when the party reportedly took place, New York City had entered Phase 4 of the state’s coronavirus reopening plan, but indoor gatherings were still limited to 50 people.
Kalanick did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment on the event, but a representative for Kalanick told The Cut that “he had lent his apartment to a friend and was unaware of the party.”
The penthouse apartment, which Kalanick purchased for $36.5 million in 2019, is located in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. The futuristic, all-glass, 6,700 square foot residence features four bedrooms, four-and-a-half bathrooms, three outdoor terraces, a private swimming pool, and sweeping views of the Hudson River and Manhattan.
This isn't the first time one of Kalanick's homes hosted a party during the coronavirus pandemic. In an August story for Vanity Fair, writer Nick Bilton described being asked if he was going to a party at Kalanick's Los Angeles home a few weeks prior. The party was reportedly held outdoors and was "smaller" than past parties Kalanick had hosted, but it appears to have occurred during a surge in coronavirus cases in Southern California when large gatherings were only permitted with members of one household.
Kalanick served as Uber's CEO until 2017, when he left company following a wave of allegations about the company's culture, including wild partying and sexual harassment. In 2018, Kalanick launched his own venture fund, 10100, which is focused on "large-scale job creation." He's currently building Cloud Kitchens, a secretive startup that rents shared kitchens for restaurants to serve the delivery market.