Uber's new logo: yay or nay?

SINGAPORE - The next time you try to get an Uber taxi after a drunken night, it might not be so easy.

You see, Uber has recently changed its logo.

Uber's iconic black-and-white "U" has been replaced by a bold white circular symbol which opens to a square centre.

MarketWatch has described the new logo as "a stylized doughnut, or an X-ray of Pac Man, or perhaps the Death Star."

CEO and co-founder Travis Kalanick who was personally involved in the redesign, blogged that the square centre represented technology, surrounded by "an atom", as portrayed by the circle.

Kalanick added that the logo's background will change based on region.

He went on to explain that Uber has evolved from being merely a ride-hailing app, "Uber no longer moves just people; we're now moving food, goods, and soon maybe much more. We are not just technology but technology that moves cities and their citizens."

All good intentions aside, it seems that the Internet didn't quite agree.

Some netizens described the new logo as a part of the human anatomy while others questioned why the "U" became a "C".

Twitter user Steve Herman said: "One would have thought a company worth billions could have afforded a focus group session."

The Internet has responded. What's your take?

debwong@sph.com.sg