CEO Says Uber Will 'Learn from the Past' After Settling With Waymo for $245 Million

Uber will “learn from the past,” blogged CEO Dara Khosrowshahi Friday, after the ride-hailing service’s $245 million settlement with Alphabet's Waymo over allegations of stealing trade secrets for autonomous driving. “While we do not believe that any trade secrets made their way from Waymo to Uber, nor do we believe that Uber has used any of Waymo’s proprietary information in its self-driving technology, we are taking steps with Waymo to ensure our Lidar and software represents just our good work.” To Alphabet, Khosrowshahi said: “You are an important investor in Uber, and we share a deep belief in the power of technology to change people’s lives for the better.” The companies are partners and competitors and won’t always agree, said the executive. “We agree that Uber’s acquisition of Otto could and should have been handled differently,” he said of the self-driving company. Self-driving technology is crucial to the future of transportation, he said. Waymo had sought at least $1 billion in damages last year and agreed to a $500 million earlier last week, which was rejected by Uber’s board, Reuters reported.