Uber seeks to avoid self-driving car court trial with rival

A group of self driving Uber vehicles position themselves to take journalists on rides during a media preview at Uber's Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburgh Sept. 12, 2016. SAN FRANCISCO -- Uber wants an explosive patent infringement lawsuit that could be worth millions sent to binding arbitration rather than open court. The request, which Uber expects to file within the next two weeks, adds a new twist to what promises to be a high-stakes battle over the future of self-driving car technology. Waymo, which started as Google's self-driving car unit, filed suit on Feb. 23 claiming Uber's laser sensor tech for self-driving cars is based on data stolen by former Google engineer -- and now key Uber executive -- Anthony Levandowski. Uber initially responded that the "baseless" charge was just an attempt to slow a competitor.