"Automated Driving First Case" - It has been nearly a month since Google sued Uber for infringing its autonomous driving intellectual property rights in early March. The case will not be pronounced until early April, and Uber has not given a reversing response to Google's step by step. Although the case broke out this month, behind it, Google Uber has been complaining for a long time in the map and travel industry, and now it has finally ushered in a flash point.
Five years ago, Google invested Uber 258 million US dollars, to today's book court, what are the grievances between the two sides? The five-year history of the two companies' mutual love and killing can be seen in the commercial warfare from investment cooperation to business struggles, digging high-rise walls and unscrupulously taking autopilot technology.
In 2009, UCLA student Travis Karanic founded a car rental application, Ubercap. The flexible Kalanic is doing four thousand and two pounds of work - contracting idle cars in the local market, and then subletting. Later, he found that the idle driver was actually a resource that could be used, so we all know that Uber was born.
In the same year, Google was still a search engine in most people's minds. Little is known about its release of Android 2.0, not to mention the hidden black technology of Google Google X. But Sebastian Tron, who was invited from Stanford University two years ago, founded the driverless project. Google, which has always been known for its advanced technology, quietly cuts into the automotive field from the basic and sophisticated control system. The subversion of the bottom.
Both companies are in the forefront of the mobile Internet era, but the emerging Uber is growing at a much faster rate, pushing rival sidecar and another Lyft, the company's business rocket.
I. A short honeymoon worth $258 millionIn 2013, Uber, a fast-expanding company, sought a new round of financing. The "faulty" Sidecar's Google will certainly not give up this tomorrow's star. Google Ventures contacted Karanic ahead of time to grab Uber's scarce share before other investors. In the face of Uber's high price, Google did not hesitate for too long, and finally gave a investment of 258 million US dollars. Interestingly, at that time, Karanic showed temperament in the face of the giants: they all said that they were short-handed and soft-spoken, but Uber started with a large share of investment. I didn’t want to leave a seat for the board of directors. After several rounds of negotiations, Uber was relieved, and David Drummond, the chief legal officer of Google's parent company Alphabet, entered the Uber board.
However, friction is frictional, and this business has benefited both sides. Google Ventures paid $258 million, and its valuation reached 3.5 billion US dollars in the future, with a return rate of nearly 14 times. Uber received the much-needed funds for rapid expansion, and the world began to expand. Moreover, Uber's travel business is highly correlated with Google Maps, and this combination can be said to be a natural fit. Based on this, although there is an inexpressible disagreement in this combination, the surface reveals more sweet words from both sides. You yell at me, you plow the fields to weave and join hands to build a beautiful picture of a new life. It is also to see the correlation between the two in terms of business and the complementarity of resources. The outside world is screaming that Google will acquire Uber and integrate maps and taxis.
But Google has exercised restraint. On the one hand, the risk of doing so is too great. On the other hand, the world did not understand Karanic’s "wolf ambition" at the time - this "dare to confront the government" (Karanic had to guarantee when he started his business) The madman who operates the company without paying personal income tax to employees is not willing to leave the fence. When the entrepreneurial experience was difficult in his early years, Karanic slept in the company, rented a car, took a shower in the casino toilet, and did not pay himself. Uber, who has spent all these pains and hatched, is the combination of Karanic's suffering and dreams. It is his heart, how can it be easily cut out. The fear of the giants comes from Kalanic’s firm belief that Uber is the next giant.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick
Uber's valuation today is nearly $70 billion, thanks in large part to Kalannik's unwavering beliefs and the firm pace of expansion around this belief. However, the source of Uber's recent difficulties can be said to be Karanic. The aggressive corporate culture he built has made Uber enemies, and has sinned the government, enterprises, and ordinary people. He also formed a weak meat inside Uber. Ecology. This kind of aggressiveness has also laid the foundation for the sin of Google and Uber in the future.
Second, I fell in love with a wild horse. There is no grassland in my house.After establishing a relationship with Uber and Google, Karanic immediately began to ask Google for resources. In addition to using Google Maps for navigation support, Karanick also requested to access Uber's taxi service in the Google Maps app. Google subsequently agreed to this request, but Uber was not happy. Because Google’s access time was too late, “it slowed down Uber’s rapid expansion with Google’s portal.â€
In addition to the lack of response speed in response to Uber's requirements, Google Maps in some areas can not provide services (such as China) and make Caranik very angry. The fools know how important the map is to a taxi software. In the face of China's huge potential market, the most critical map service Google can't give. In order to quickly enter the Chinese market, Uber reached a cooperation with Baidu at the end of 2014, accepting Baidu's strategic investment, while Baidu provided map services and Baidu map APP access. (Of course, for the long-sleeved Kalannik, the partner is definitely more good, so Gaode is also one of the partners.) For Google, this is a bit embarrassing - as a big brother, originally attracted Uber this younger brother The basic resources under the guidance can't be provided now, forcing the younger brother to talk with the competitors. But Google can only scream and suffer big losses, who called the original withdrawal from mainland China.
It is a helpless move for Uber to cooperate with competitors in mainland China, and has to let go. However, it is unbearable, and what happened next, let Google really experience the taste of being betrayed. In March 2015, Uber announced the acquisition of map start-up DeCarte, a spokesperson saying "will continue to improve map-based products and services." The words are very swaying, but listening to Google’s ears is clearly "big brother, younger brother, my wings are hard, and I have gone to the door." On this day, Google’s venture capital led Uris’s Maris and Klein to have a sleepless sleep. Night – this is the story of a farmer and snake in a modern, modern business edition.
But from Uber's point of view, this is actually a natural thing. As the volume expands, Uber generates more and more data about people's travel, which has great potential value – it not only indicates traffic flow in the city, but also provides analysis for smarter traffic scheduling. The foundation; also pointed out the scope and destination of people's activities, which is of great significance for timely mining of people's needs and providing accurate local services. As Uber gradually expands its business to local services outside of taxis, whether it is for Karanic's personal ambitions or for Uber's future development, it is no longer appropriate to commit to Google. It is increasingly important to have your own map. .
In June 2015, Uber again took the Microsoft Bing map business. The complete data provided by Bing means that Uber is really no longer completely subject to Google on the map. Together with the data came to Uber, there are about 100 Microsoft image technology engineers, together with the previously acquired DeCarte, Uber's map team has more than 150 people. For any map company, such a team can not be underestimated. In November of the same year, Uber, who abandoned the acquisition of high-precision map manufacturer Here, began the gang-out event and cooperated with Dutch navigation manufacturer TomTom to obtain digital maps and traffic data from more than 300 cities around the world.
What makes Google even more depressed is that Uber has also dug up Google Maps business director Brian McClendon and map product management director Manik Gupta in June and December 2015, respectively. (Manik Gupta).
Brian McClendon
Google’s feelings about Uber at this time are very complicated. On the one hand, the more Uber expands, the higher the return on Google’s $258 million investment; on the other hand, the price of these returns is that Uber has eroded Google’s dominance on the map. Google’s original idea was to “enclose†Uber with a map to realize value in a division of labor. However, Uber is a real thing. This wild horse can not stand the bondage. If you can't provide a grassland for it, you should be prepared to be ruined by the lawn. However, for Google, this lawn will be a treasure trove of gold. Compared to the return of Uber, the data mining and local market services that extend from the map of the home are obviously broader. On the side of the couch, it was easy for others to sleep, and in the face of Uber, who took the initiative to challenge and attacked his important field, Google launched a counterattack.
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