Ex-Google exec sent to prison for stealing robocar secrets

Levandowski, a former Google engineer who helped steer the company’s self-driving car project, was sentenced on Aug 4, 2020, to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay more than US$850,000 after pleading guilty to stealing trade secrets before joining Uber’s effort to build robotic vehicles for its ride-hailing service. — AP

SAN RAMON, California: A former Google engineer has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to stealing trade secrets before joining Uber’s effort to build robotic vehicles for its ride-hailing service.

The sentence handed down Aug 4 by US District Judge William Alsup came more than four months after former Google engineer Anthony Levandowski reached a plea agreement with the federal prosecutors who brought a criminal case against him last August.