The Uber engineer accused of downloading thousands of files once urged Travis Kalanick to give a 'Greed is Good' speech

pulse

August 16, 2017 11:06 PM

When it comes to Uber and its tough-talking founder and former CEO Travis Kalanick, the word "greed" just keeps coming up.

Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko in "Wall Street"

News stories used "greed" target="_blank" in their headlines to describe many of Uber's decisions under his reign, like taking investment money from Saudia Arabia, a country that outlawed women from driving; or firing up Uber's high-cost vehicle leasing program (expected to be shuttered soon); or the lawsuit filed against Uber by Waymo, the self-driving car unit of Google's parent company, Alphabet.

The key engineer at the center of that lawsuit,

"Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. ... The point is, ladies and gentlemen, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good."

Meanwhile, on a hearing on Wednesday, Judge Alsup, who is overseeing the Waymo v. Uber case, warned Waymo's lawyers that greed is not good.

Waymo is accusing

As lawyers from each side debated the potential damages at stake, Waymo tried to add more trade secrets to its list of allegedly stolen items.

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