Uber had hoped Levandowski, one the most respected self-driving engineers in Silicon Valley, would help the ride services company catch up to rivals including Waymo, in the race for self-driving technology. Instead, the hiring led to a court fight and the threat of criminal charges. Uber replaced him as the head of its self-driving car unit in April before finally making the decision to fire him.
Embattled engineer Anthony Levandowski collected USD 120 million from Google, despite involvement with at least one start-up that would ultimately compete with the company, according to new legal filings.