A surprise settlement brought an early end to the high-profile court battle between Uber and Waymo on Friday.
And Quartz’s Alison Griswold says that, after all the drama, there was one person who came out as the winner: Uber’s new chief exec Dara Khosrowshahi.
“He wrote this letter [after the agreement] saying that his job is to set the course for the future of the company,” she said. “He gets to come out looking like the adult in the room and the one who’s cleaning up the mistakes of his predecessor, which is only good for his image of turning Uber around.”
Waymo, the self-driving car unit of Google parent Alphabet, sued Uber a year ago, alleging trade secret theft. At trial this week, lawyers painted a picture of a vast conspiracy by former CEO Travis Kalanick and Anthony Levandowski, a former Waymo engineer whose start-up Otto was acquired by Uber in 2016, to steal technology and get ahead in the autonomous vehicle race.
But before the start of the fourth day of testimony, the companies said they reached a deal. Uber agreed not to use any Waymo technology or components in its cars. The company also handed over a 0.34 percent stake, valued at about $245 million.
In his letter, Khosrowshahi said he regretted the actions that led to the trial and that he agrees “Uber’s acquisition of Otto could and should have been handled differently.”
The social video platform's future remains in doubt, as players scramble to profit from the chaos. Plus: Big oil gets bigger, DOGE downsizes, and tariffs!
Ty Young, CEO of Ty J. Young Wealth Management, joins Cheddar to discuss Trump's moves as he returns to Washington D.C. and how it may affect the U.S. economy.
Starbucks’ decision to restrict its restrooms to paying customers has flushed out a wider problem: a patchwork of restroom use policies that varies by state and city. Starbucks announced last week a new code of conduct that says people need to make a purchase if they want to hang out or use the restroom. The coffee chain's policy change for bathroom privileges has left Americans confused and divided over who gets to go and when. The American Restroom Association, a public toilet advocacy group, was among the critics. Rules about restroom access in restaurants vary by state, city and county. The National Retail Federation says private businesses have a right to limit restroom use.
President Donald Trump is talking up a joint venture investing up to $500 billion for infrastructure tied to artificial intelligence by a new partnership formed by OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank. The new entity, Stargate, will start building out data centers and the electricity generation needed for the further development of the fast-evolving AI in Texas, according to the White House. The initial investment is expected to be $100 billion and could reach five times that sum. While Trump has seized on similar announcements to show that his presidency is boosting the economy, there were already expectations of a massive buildout of data centers and electricity plants needed for the development of AI.
Chris Ruder, Spikeball Founder and CEO, explains how he and his friends put roundnet on the global map, plus, how Spikeball helps people "find their circle."
J.W. Roth, CEO of Venu Holding Corporation, discusses the company's IPO and plans to redefine live music entertainment with their fan founded, fan-owned model.
