Uber loses VP of Global Vehicle Programs

One more Uber executive has left the company. This time its Sherif Marakby, Uber’s vice president of Global Vehicle Programs, who helped launched the company’s self-driving program in Pittsburgh. It isn’t clear why Marakby left Uber but according to Automotive News, it isn’t related to the lawsuit the company has with Waymo. It can’t be said if it’s related to sexual harassment allegations either. Marakby joined Uber back in April after working for Ford for 25 years.

“Sherif’s deep experience and knowledge of the automotive industry have helped us tremendously in working to make self-driving cars a reality,” an Uber spokesperson told TechCrunch in a statement. Marakby joins at least five other execs who’ve left the company in the past few months, including its head of comms, president, head of AI Labs, SVP of engineering, and VP of growth.

Uber loses its president after 6 months on the job

Amidst all the controversies it finds itself in, its second in command has left the company. The news first broke on Recode and has now been confirmed by the ride-sharing company. Uber President Jeff Jones has left the company. According to a statement from Uber they “want to thank Jeff for his six months and the company and wish him all the best.” Prior to his job at Uber, he previously ran marketing for Target. Jones headed Uber’s operations, marketing, and customer support. But it seems the difficult past few months for the company proved to be too difficult for him.

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Uber finally finds its way to Android Wear 2.0

It was promised back in Google I/O 2015 and it took a full 21 months but it’s finally here. Uber now has a standalone app on Android Wear 2.0. You don’t need to have the app installed on your phone to get it to run. You can request rides right from your wrist. Select bookmarked destinations such as your work and home. The app also lets you check prices, ETAs as well as your driver’s progress and what his or her car model and plate number is. And yes, you can follow the ride inside the car, too. The downside is the app is only available for Android Wear 2.0, which means if you don’t have one, you still don’t get the app. You can install it from the Play Store right on your smartwatch.

Source: Android Police

Uber now has mapping cars in five continents following launch in Singapore

Uber is taking one more step forward with its mapping initiative by bringing map cars to Southeast Asia through its launch in Singapore. By having these cartographic cars, which basically have drivers ride around the city state with mapping tech on top of the cars, they are trying to collect data about Singapore based on real trips. They’ve done this here in the country, in the U.S., the United Kingdom, Australia, and South Africa.

Uber’s been working on trying to get its own data on its trips instead of having to rely on Google. At the same time, it’ll help in giving exact details about a drop-off point in certain buildings and areas. However, Uber promises riders who catch these vehicles in the country will not have their pick-up and drop-off points retained and these imagery will not be made public. Plus, Uber isn’t shy to admit this could also help in pushing its self-driving initiative further.

Source:  Engadget