In 2016, Uber acquired the autonomous trucking start-up Otto, led by Anthony Levandowski, a former Google engineer. When Google first tested its self-driving car on public roads a decade ago, Mr. Levandowski and Mr. Urmson, who had played a key role in Google’s original self-driving car project before cofounding Aurora, were two of the project’s key engineers. The test was a milestone that eventually led to an investment frenzy.The acquisition, which valued Otto at $680 million, turned sour when Waymo filed a lawsuit against Uber in early 2017, claiming that Mr. Levandowski had stolen trade secrets from Google. Uber fired …
