That's because the company previously held talks to acquire the startup at the center of the case, according to federal court testimony from its cofounder Lior Ron. Ron said he and Levandowski had held talks with many parties, including Google, venture capitalists, and Lyft. The talks with Lyft advanced to the point of getting a "verbal offer" and potential purchase price, Ron said during his testimony. Uber ultimately acquired Otto, and a year later, Waymo sued them both for allegedly stealing Waymo's trade secrets. That's not to say the positions would've been reversed if the Lyft talks had gone through, but it's possible that Lyft dodged a giant lawsuit when talks with Ron and Levandowski fell apart.

Source: Forbes February 07, 2018 21:00 UTC