If you thought the Waymo v. Uber trial wrapped up when the companies settled early last year ... well, nope.
An unsealed federal indictment Tuesday revealed 33 charges against engineer-turned-executive Anthony Levandowski, whose arraignment is set for this afternoon in San Jose. If convicted, Levandowski faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Levandowski was an engineer at what was then called Project Chauffeur at Google (it later became Waymo) before he started his own autonomous truck company, Otto, in 2015. That business was quickly snatched up for $680 million by Uber, which was starting to develop its own self-driving car program.
The indictment states that Levandowski took 14,000 files related to light sensors, or LiDAR, from Google, put them on his personal laptop, and brought them to Uber.
SEE ALSO:Uber fired Anthony Levandowski. Now he's back with a self-driving truck startup.The indictment is already affecting the self-driving industry. Last year, Levandowski launched a new driver assistance company called Pronto focused on truck drivers. When the charges were unsealed Tuesday, the company announced that Levandowski was no longer the CEO and Pronto's chief safety officer would take on the role.
"The criminal charges filed against Anthony relate exclusively to [LiDAR] and do not in any way involve Pronto’s ground-breaking technology," the statement read. "Of course, we are fully supportive of Anthony and his family during this period."
When Pronto first launched, Levandowski wrote a blog post that included the line, "Yes, I'm back."
Waymo's response to the indictment over its stolen materials was measured, calling Levandowski a "former Project Chauffeur employee." A spokesperson said in an email, "We have always believed competition should be fueled by innovation, and we appreciate the work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI on this case.”
Uber fired Levandowski in 2017. In response to the charges, a spokesperson said, "We’ve cooperated with the government throughout their investigation and will continue to do so.”
Back in February 2018, after four days of testimony (we heard nothing from Levandowski, who invoked the Fifth Amendment), Waymo and Uber settled, with Uber agreeing to give Google parent company Alphabet .34 percent equity, worth $245 million.
UPDATE: Aug. 27, 2019, 4:40 p.m. PDT A statement from Uber was added above.
TopicsSelf-Driving CarsUber
(责任编辑：熱點)
This app is giving streaming TV news a second tryOf course Matthew McConaughey faked an Australian accent for a yearOf course Matthew McConaughey faked an Australian accent for a yearCharlie Sheen just made Debbie Reynolds' death about TrumpTributes flow after death of former Singapore president S.R. NathanDramatic photo captures nun texting friends after Italy earthquake
The image of an injured, bloodied nun, calmly texting friends and family in the wake of the deadly e
...[详细]PSA: You can lawfully refuse to pay service charge at restaurants, hotels in this country
Next time you’re not happy with your food in a restaurant or the drink at a pub in India, reme
...[详细]Cinnabon fails the galaxy with terrible tweet about Carrie Fisher's death
The brand-fail force is strong with Cinnabon.
。 Carrie Fisher died at age 60 on Tuesday and while fan
...[详细]LAS VEGAS — Chinese electronics giant Xiaomi is jumping in to the ultra-thin TV game. The comp
...[详细]Tributes flow after death of former Singapore president S.R. Nathan
The Singaporean government has announced that former president, 92-year-old Sellapan Ramanathan (wid
...[详细]America's "most infamous" yet rapidly rising group of White supremacists, the Ku Klux Klan, is about
...[详细]Janet Jackson gives birth to her first child at age 50
Janet Jackson gave birth to her first child today -- a boy named Eissa Al Mana.。 People。reports that
...[详细]Best esports plays of the week: : 1 shot, 2 kills from 'CS:GO' pro
At the top level of competitive gaming, the best of the best give it their all to win big. On their
...[详细]Tyler, the Creator helped Frank Ocean celebrate 'Blonde' release in a delicious way
The release of Frank Ocean's 。 Blonde。is a cause for celebration to the fans who waited four years fo
...[详细]The artist blowing people's minds in virtual reality
Upon Salvador Dali's death in 1989, the world was reminded of his unique ability to render "the unre
...[详细]Pokémon Go is so big that it has its own VR porn parody now
This airline sacrificed a goat on the tarmac before its flight took off
SEE ALSO:Uber fired Anthony Levandowski. Now he's back with a self-driving truck startup.