Jeff Immelt, the former C. E. O. of General Electric and a final candidate for Uber’s top post, said Sunday he would not pursue the position.
SAN FRANCISCO — The search for Uber’s new chief executive may be nearing a conclusion.
Over the weekend, Uber’s board of directors has been meeting to decide on a new leader for the ride-hailing company, which has been without a chief executive since co-founder Travis Kalanick stepped down under pressure on June 20. The slate of candidates had narrowed to three people, according to people with knowledge of the process, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the details were confidential.
One of those final candidates, Jeffrey R. Immelt, the former chief executive of General Electric, posted on Twitter on Sunday that he had “decided not to pursue a leadership position at Uber.” He did not elaborate on why he was pulling out of the race.
The other finalists include Meg Whitman, the chief executive of Hewlett Packard Enterprise, who previously had said more than once that she planned to stay at H. P. E. One of the people with knowledge of the process said Ms. Whitman is likely to be the board’s choice.
The third candidate’s identity is unknown.
No matter who gets the job, running Uber will be no easy task. While the business is growing, the company has been trying to reform its workplace culture following accusations of sexual harassment. Even with a new C. E. O., it still lacks many key executives, including a chief financial officer and a chief operating officer. And it remains entangled in legal imbroglios including an intellectual property dispute with Waymo, Google’s self-driving car spinoff.
