Uber is accused of using ex-CIA agents to spy on its rivals overseas.
The testimony offered today in a San Francisco courtroom comes amid revelations that federal prosecutors are investigating claims that Uber deployed an espionage team to plunder trade secrets from its rivals.
The allegation has triggered a delay in a high-profile federal trial over whether the ride-hailing service stole self-driving car technology from Waymo, a Google spinoff.
Under questioning, Richard Jacobs, Uber’s former manager of global intelligence, says the beleaguered company hired several contractors that employed former CIA agents that helped the company infiltrate computers belonging to rivals.
Jacobs began working in March 2016 and was fired seven months ago. Jacob’s lawyer wrote a 37-page letter summarizing his allegations, adding that the company tried to conceal the misconduct by using computers and other devices designed to leave no digital trails.
