Thread by @bizcarson

Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is about to take the stand in Day 2 of #UberWaymo. Lots of tension and swiveling heads in the courtroom as we get ready for his testimony.

Travis Kalanick enters alongside his lawyer, Melinda Haag. (She's a big deal) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melinda_H…

Also in the courtroom is Travis Kalanick's dad, who is looking on. First up is Waymo's questioning. #UberWaymo

Waymo: Do you agree that autonomus vehicles are going to be safer than human vehicles?
Yes.
.... cheaper?
Yes.
In order for Uber to exist in the future, it will need to be a leader in the space?
Yes. #UberWaymo

When Waymo's lawyer asks how Travis defines winner takes all, he says the best example of it is Google's search business. Clever to throw it back at Google. #UberWaymo

At some point, Kalanick agrees that he became unhappy with the pace of development at Uber's Advanced Technologies Center. #UberWaymo

(So far, most of these questions are yes/no)

Despite largely just answering, "yes" "no" "i don't know" Travis Kalanick is taking a lot of sips of water while on the stand. #UberWaymo

Waymo: Uber had discussions to purchase a non-existent company from Anthony Levandowski?
Kalanick: Yes. "He was very adamant about starting a company and we were very adamant about hiring him."
#UberWaymo

Waymo shows a visitor badge with Anthony Levandowski's photo from a Dec. 20, 2015 meeting. On the badge it says he's there to meet with Travis Kalanick for meeting.
Kalanick doesn't remember what was said. #UberWaymo

We're back on Mr. Bares notes. PLEASE EXPLAIN WHAT YOU MEANT BY A POUND OF FLESH, TRAVIS.

Waymo: "Did you tell the group that what you wanted was a pound of flesh?
Travis Kalanick. "I don’t know specifically. It’s a term I use from time to time. "
So, still no explanation. #UberWaymo

Travis Kalanick is drinking another baby water bottle. I wonder how many he has up on the stand with him. #UberWaymo

Waymo is trying to trip up Kalanick into saying he planned Otto with Levandowski, like this over an invitation to edit a googledoc called NewCo plan.
It refers to the company that you and Mr Levandowski were planning?
No.
It refers to the company that would become Otto?
Yes.

Most animated Kalanick has been is when Waymo asks him to define a jam session: "A jam sesh is when you get a bunch of interesting creative people in a room, they have an idea, and it eventually becomes something interesting and innovative." #UberWaymo

Kalanick and Levandowski had a jam sesh on January 3 (before Levandowski had left Google). On a list of items on a white board, Travis wrote "Laser is the sauce". #UberWaymo

Waymo: And Uber didn’t have that sauce prior to the ottomotto acquisition, did it?
Kalanick: “That’s correct”
#UberWaymo

One of possible outcomes of Uber acquiring Levandowski's future company was "Uber Super Duper" or "USD" or.... "$"

And yes, "$" became the codename for the Otto acquisition. #UberWaymo

"I wanted to hire Anthony and he wanted to start a company. So I tried to come up with a situation where he could feel like he started a company and I could feel like I hired him," Kalanick says of how Otto deal came together.

Kalanick acknowledges initial talks had been just about a vendor relationship/Uber buying lasers. Then he wanted to hire him. #UberWaymo

Uber milestones for Anthony Levandowski to acheive included long-range laser with "250M range sensing pedestrian wearing black North Face jacket and jeans" #UberWaymo

While the black north face jacket thing might seem weird, seeing black at a long-distance is actually VERY hard for lidar. This would be a big achievement.

Also on Uber's milestone list for Otto: Mid-range lasers, manufacturer ready, Data and labeling. Each milestone got a certain amount of percentage of stock.
Included is also "Autonomy Win" and "Uber Win" (10% and 20%) respectively. #UberWaymo

And that's it for Kalanick today. He'll take the stand first thing tomorrow at 7:30am. #UberWaymo

Overall, Kalanick's testimony was uneventful, except for his water guzzling. Waymo's lawyers tried to get under his skin by cutting him off, but Kalanick didn't bite. Let's see what happens tomorrow when Waymo keeps pushing the power-hungry, 'cheat code' narratives. #UberWaymo