Uber Gets Sued By Waymo Over Stolen Self-Driving Car Secrets

With so many tech companies vying for supremacy in the race for self-driving cars, some of them were bound to clash at some point. This is exactly what is happening between Google’s driverless car division Waymo and the cab-hailing company Uber involving a serious lawsuit about stolen technology. According to Waymo, Uber was committing patent infringement.

Those who have been paying attention to developments in the self-driving world would know that Google was one of the first to really invest in driverless vehicles and make it explode in popularity. They would also know that Uber is practically staking its future on being the first to carve a market for autonomous cabs. In a Medium piece posted by Waymo, it acknowledges that competition is always good for the industry, but not at the cost of illegal actions.

“Recently, we uncovered evidence that Otto and Uber have taken and are using key parts of Waymo’s self-driving technology,” the piece reads. “Today, we’re taking legal action against Otto and its parent company Uber for misappropriating Waymo trade secrets and infringing our patents. We wanted to share more context on why we made this decision.”

Supposedly, a former Google engineer named Anthony Levandowski downloaded thousands of files related to the proprietary technology developed by the tech giant and which is now being used by Uber. Among the most significant files stolen include “LiDAR and circuit board” designs, which are crucial in helping cars navigate roads and obstacles without a driver.

Neither Otto nor Uber have responded to requests for comment thus far, Ars Technica reports, but the lawsuit has attracted the attention of Silicon Valley veterans. After all, Google was a significant backer of Uber when it was just starting out and now, it’s turning on its former seedling. As for Otto, its rapid rise to become a major player in the driverless industry is worth noting.