Google spent over $1bn on self-driving technology

Google spent a whopping $1.1 billion on developing its self-driving software and hardware, says the recent deposition of Shawn Bananzadeh, a financial analyst at Waymo. Bananzadeh was testifying in the ongoing Waymo’s lawsuit against Uber which claims the ride-hailing company stole intellectual property and trade secrets to develop its own autonomous technology. 

Throughout Bananzadeh’s deposition, every dollar amount was redacted to protect Waymo’s confidential commercial information. Waymo has patented a technology that will make its self-driving cars soft on the outside if it collides with a human.