Lyft's first cars wore fuzzy pink mustaches on their grilles, and riders were told to sit up front and fist-bump the driver. By March 2019 the mustaches were gone and Lyft was racing Uber to the stock market. It won by about six weeks. The San Francisco company was the first ride-hailing app to go public in the United States, and investors were still guessing whether the business could ever turn a profit.

From Zimride to Lyft

Logan Green and John Zimmer first built Zimride in 2007, a carpool board for college students making long trips. In 2012 they launched Lyft, which matched riders with nearby drivers for short trips across town. The bet was that ordinary people would share their own cars with strangers if an app handled the payment and the trust. Lyft focused on the United States and Canada while Uber spread worldwide.

A Pop That Faded

Lyft priced at $72 a share and began trading on the Nasdaq as LYFT on March 29, 2019. It opened at $87.24 and closed at $78.29, up 8.7 percent. Within days the stock fell below its offering price. Green and Zimmer stepped back from running the company in 2023. In 2025 Lyft bought FreeNow, a European taxi app, and it still trades on the Nasdaq as LYFT.

Cover: Whistler in a Hansom Cab, George Du Maurier. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for a hansom cab (a ride for hire).