Despite all of its regulatory headaches and almost being involved in a new French Revolution, ride sharing company Uber Technologies Inc has continued its meteoric rise as one of the most disruptive services in recent history, and now sources speaking to The Wall Street Journal claim that the company’s valuation now exceeds $50 billion, matching Facebook’s record valuation as a venture backed startup in just six short years.

Sources told WSJ that Uber has just closed its latest funding round for $1 billion, bringing its total funding up to $5 billion. Companies said to be included in the investment round include Microsoft Corp and Indian media company Bennett Coleman & Co, fulfilling Uber’s plans to forge more high-value technology partnerships and expand its coverage outside the U.S.

While Uber may be the hot tech company of the moment, it has also been diligently planning its future, which could include the purchase of an entire fleet of self-driving cars. A Tesla Motors board member claimed earlier this year that Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said he would buy 500,000 self-driving Tesla cars if the company managed to build them by 2020.

While this could have been an offhand comment by Kalanick, self-driving cars could pose some serious competition for ridesharing services like Uber in the not too distant future, and the company could follow the example of fellow $50 billion club member Facebook, whose motto seems to be “If you can’t beat ’em, buy ’em.”

Regarding its rumored valuation, an Uber spokesperson said, “We aren’t commenting on additional speculation.” Microsoft and Bennett Coleman have also not confirmed their involvement in Uber’s recent funding round.

Image courtesy of Uber Technologies Inc