The Uber board member who made a sexist remark during today’s meeting about the prevalence of sexism within the company has resigned from his position. David Bonderman’s resignation from Uber’s board was first announced by The New York Times, and confirmed in a statement by Bonderman himself, in which he said his comment was “careless, inappropriate, and inexcusable.”
Bonderman was recorded making the remark in reply to to fellow board member Arianna Huffington, who was speaking about the need for more female representation on Uber’s board. When “there’s one woman on the board, it’s much more likely that there will be a second woman on the board,” Huffington said, to which Bonderman shot back “what it shows is that it’s much more likely to be more talking.”
Bonderman — who helped found TPG, a private equity firm — said that the comment “came across in a way that was the opposite of what I intended,” but that he understood “the destructive effect it had,” and that he took full responsibility for it.
Uber is currently considering the findings of the so-called Holder Report: an internal investigation into claims of sexual harassment and a toxic sexist attitude within the company. Bonderman noted the report in his statement, saying that he had been working with the company for six months on the report, and recognized “the importance of implementing [its] requirements” for the future of the company.
His resignation will come into effect from tomorrow morning, and comes as Uber continues to hemorrhage executives and major figures. Earlier in the day, CEO Travis Kalanick confirmed that he was also taking a leave of absence from the company.