OTTO founder steps aside as head of Uber’s self-driving group

Ex-employer Google has accused Levandowski of stealing confidential information.

April 28, 2017

Anthony Levandowski at right with Sean Waters director of compliance and regulatory affairs for Daimler Trucks North America during a panel presentation at the American Trucking Associations ATA annual convention last year Photo by Sean KilcarrFleet Owner — Anthony Levandowski (*at right, with Sean Waters, director of compliance and regulatory affairs for Daimler Trucks North America*) during a panel presentation at the American Trucking Associations (ATA) annual convention last year. (*Photo by Sean Kilcarr/Fleet Owner*)

The founder of OTTO, the company behind the autonomous beer delivery in Colorado last year, has stepped aside as head of Uber’s self-driving group while a lawsuit moves forward.

Uber confirmed to media outlets that Anthony Levandowski is taking another position within the company.

Levandowski worked at Google, prior to launching OTTO. Uber then purchased OTTO for $680 million in August and gave Levandowski a leadership role.

Several months after OTTO’s beer run, Waymo, the self-driving car unit spun-off from Google, initiated court action against Uber and Levandowski.

He is accused of stealing confidential documents related to LiDAR, short for 'light detection and ranging,' which are specialized radar sensors that map their surroundings. Eric Meyhofer has been named as Levandowski’s replacement.

At an industry conference last fall, Levandowski presented an ambitious vision for the future, where autonomous trucks allowing for around-the-clock trucking.