Trust AAE Speakers Bureau for Booking Top Professional Speakers. Find a Keynote Speaker Today.
Trust AAE Speakers Bureau for Booking Top Professional Speakers. Find a Keynote Speaker Today.
John Zimmer

John Zimmer

Keynote Speaker: Lyft Co-Founder and President

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John Zimmer Biography

John Zimmer is the co-founder and president of Lyft, an on-demand transportation company, which he founded with Logan Green in 2012. Lyft facilitates over one million rides a day, and is available to 95% of the population of the United States as well as in Toronto.

While at Cornell, Zimmer was inspired to develop a rideshare program by filling the empty seats he had during his rides home over school breaks: “I was driving from Upstate New York to New York City and all around me were these empty seats.” As a student at Cornell, Zimmer took a City and Regional Planning Class, called Green Cities (taught by Dr. Robert Young, now at the University of Texas at Austin). The class discussed the principles of simple design changes to large infrastructure, which would later influence the development of Zimride.

Zimmer and Green were introduced through a mutual friend on Facebook. Zimmer had posted details about his new company called “Zimride,” which interested Green, who had been keeping a journal about carpooling ideas.

After leaving his job at Lehman Brothers, Zimmer moved to Silicon Valley with Green to work on Zimride full-time. Lyft was launched in the summer of 2012 as a service of Zimride. The change from Zimride to Lyft was the result of a hackathon that sought a means of daily engagement with its users, instead of once or twice a year. In May 2013, Zimmer and Green officially changed the name of the company from Zimride to Lyft. Zimmer did not take a salary during the first three years of Lyft's operation, and he and Green worked on the company out of an apartment they shared.

In June 2013, Lyft completed a $60 million Series C venture financing round led by Andreessen Horowitz, bringing its total amount raised to $83 million. In July 2013, Lyft sold Zimride to Enterprise Holdings, the parent company of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, enabling the company to focus exclusively on the growth of Lyft. In April 2014, Lyft completed a $250 million Series D financing round led by Coatue, Alibaba, and Andreessen Horowitz, bringing its total amount raised to $332.5 million. In January 2016, Lyft announced the closing of a 1 billion Series F financing round led by GM, which contributed $500 million of the total, bringing its total amount raised to date to $2.01 billion. On April 11, 2017, Lyft closed a $600 million Series G financing round which included investors such as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and PSP Investments. On December 5, 2017, Lyft announced a Series H financing round worth $1.5 billion led by Alphabet Inc.

Currently available to 95% of the US population as well as in Toronto and Ottawa, Lyft has over 30 million riders and 2 million drivers.

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John Zimmer Videos

Driving with Lyft vs. Food Delivery | John Zimmer Tries Both
Sen. Mark Warner & John Zimmer on the future of the workforce
CNBC's full interview with Lyft co-founder and pres. John Zimmer

How do I book John Zimmer to speak at my event?

Our experienced booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure speakers like John Zimmer for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment since 2002. Click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page to check availability for John Zimmer, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get speaking fee information and check availability for John Zimmer or any other speaker of your choice.

How much does it cost to book John Zimmer for a speaking engagement?

Speaking fees for John Zimmer, or any other speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. For the most current speaking fee to hire John Zimmer, click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak directly with an experienced booking agent.

What topics does John Zimmer speak about?

John Zimmer is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Business, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Leadership, Technology, Travel and Business Leadership.

Who is the agent for John Zimmer?

AAE Speakers Bureau has successfully secured keynote speakers like John Zimmer for clients worldwide since 2002. As a full-service speaker booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Please click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page including the details of your event, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book John Zimmer for your next private or corporate function.

What is a full-service speaker booking agency?

AAE Speakers Bureau is a full-service speaker booking agency, meaning we can completely manage the speaker’s or celebrity’s engagement with your organization from the time of booking your speaker through the event’s completion. We provide all of the services you need to host John Zimmer or any other speaker of your choice, including offer negotiation, contractual assistance, accounting and billing, and event speaker travel and logistics services. When you book a speaker with us, we manage the process of hosting a speaker for you as an extension of your team. Our goal is to give our clients peace of mind and a best-in-class service experience when booking a speaker with us.

Why is AAE Speakers Bureau different from other booking agencies?

If you’re looking for the best speaker recommendations, paired with a top-notch customer service experience, you’re in the right place. At AAE Speakers Bureau, we exclusively represent the interests of our clients - professional organizations, companies, universities, and associations. We intentionally do not represent the speakers we feature or book. That is so we can present our clients with the broadest and best performing set of speaker options in the market today, and we can make these recommendations without any obligation to promote a specific speaker over another. This is why when our agents suggest a speaker for your event, you can be assured that they are of the highest quality with a history of proven success with our other clients.


John Zimmer is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics including Business, Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Please contact us for live or virtual event fee details. John Zimmer can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Robin Chase, Dirk Ahlborn and Vic Strecher, Ph.D. MPH. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling John Zimmer for an upcoming event.

John Zimmer Videos

Driving with Lyft vs. Food Delivery | John Zimmer Tries Both
Sen. Mark Warner & John Zimmer on the future of the workforce
CNBC's full interview with Lyft co-founder and pres. John Zimmer
Connected Car Expo 2015 - John Zimmer, Lyft Keynote Address
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