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Self Driving Car Google Technology

Google sues Uber after accusing its self-driving car rival of industrial espionage

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By John Glenday, Reporter

February 24, 2017 | 2 min read

Google has taken Uber to court alleging that the ride hailing service had stolen trade secrets and technology pertaining to its self-driving car initiative in order to further its own goals in the sector.

The case revolves around Waymo, Google’s self-driving car project, and Otto - co-founded by former Waymo manager Anthony Levandowski and subsequently purchased by Uber last year in a $700m transaction.

Whilst cross-pollination of talent and ideas is common in the sector, Google alleges that Uber has overstepped the mark by taking direct possession of company secrets, specifically by downloading ’14,000 highly confidential and proprietary design files’ prior to his departure.

These files are believed to relate to a laser-based radar system, which allows vehicles to navigate obstacles by detecting their presence in advance, after Waymo noted Uber’s plans bore a ‘striking resemblance’ to their own proprietary technology.

In a statement Waymo said: “We believe these actions were part of a concerted plan to steal Waymo's trade secrets and intellectual property.

“Our parent company Alphabet has long worked with Uber in many areas, and we didn't make this decision lightly. However, given the overwhelming facts that our technology has been stolen, we have no choice but to defend our investment and development of this unique technology”

Uber, whose ties to Google are close having recently hired former Google search chief Amit Singhal, has said it takes the case extremely seriously and is carefully reviewing the claims.

Driverless cars have advanced more rapidly than even technology proponents anticipated with Ford committing itself to mass production by 2021.

Self Driving Car Google Technology

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