[irjustin]

I'd argue the opposite that this was extremely expensive for Uber.

The legal nightmare which resulted a loss in 0.34% of equity and combined with having to throw away whatever they had[0] before as part of the deal with Google is not cheap at all.

Anecdotally, I have engineering friends on the Uber self driving team and they talk about how they are just starting over again and how far behind they are as a result of it.

This is definitely a path Uber would not choose to go down again in hind sight. All to say, Uber did pay a significant price for "30 months of someone else's life".

[0] https://www.wired.com/story/uber-waymo-lawsuit-settlement/

[CobrastanJorji]

It's a gamble, though. Say you're Uber's CEO, Travis Kalanick, and you believe 3 things for sure: 1. Uber's completely doomed if self-driving cars show up and Uber doesn't own it, 2. Sexual harassment is a good idea, and 3. Uber's behind the top players in self-driving car research.

Say you believe that there's a 25% chance that this Google guy can get you to the front of the self-driving car race, and there's a 50% chance you'll get caught. Based on those 3 assumptions at the top, this is a worthwhile risk.

Sure, he wouldn't do it again with hindsight, both because it didn't work out and because his board fired him for creating a culture of sexual harassment, but the risk was probably worth it, strategically if not ethically.

[gowld]

> 25% chance that this Google guy can get you to the front of the self-driving car race

This is the absurd assumption

[engineeringwoke]

Exactly. Cracked up at the harassment bit.

[goatherders]

Thanks for sharing.

[goatherders]

Downvoted for having manners. Lol. Dont ever change, HN.