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 Herman Herman, director of CMU's National Robotics Engineering
Center, former employer of the experts Uber [UBER.UL] hired, said
the center currently has no plans for research projects with Uber,
adding, "certainly we are open to it in the future."
Despite the lack of research collaboration, Uber in September
provided the university with a $5.5 million gift to pay for new
robotics faculty and graduate research.
"It's not a high priority for us to get joint work with them,"
Herman said. "Uber decided to give us a gift and that's the extent
of the relationship at this moment."
When Uber in February unveiled the partnership with CMU, a top
institute in robotics research, it envisioned a cozier
collaboration. The company said on its website that it planned to
work closely with university faculty and students on "research and
development, primarily in the areas of mapping and vehicle safety
and autonomy technology."
Some CMU faculty see Uber's gift as an attempt to make amends for
depleting the university's robotics staff.
"I think they mostly realized the impact with that hiring and they
want to make sure they do the right thing for the university,"
Herman said. The 40 people Uber hired now work at the company's
Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Other CMU faculty say Uber's monetary support of professors and
students could benefit the company, too.
"The best source of new employees would be from CMU," said Raj
Rajkumar, professor in the College of Engineering and director of
the university's transportation center. "It would make sense for
them to have a very cordial relationship with CMU."
Uber declined to answer questions from Reuters. In a statement, a
spokeswoman said: "We're very pleased to be in Pittsburgh and
continue to be excited about our ongoing collaboration with CMU."
Uber has plunged more deeply into developing self-driving cars,
which could someday replace its contract drivers.
CMU MAY HAVE MOVED ON
Robotics leaders say CMU has moved on after Uber's hiring spree,
turning its attention to new projects and research partners. Earlier
this month the university announced it had landed four new federal
research projects, totaling more than $11 million over the next
three years.
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"We are very busy on our end," Herman said. "We have plenty of
projects and plenty of clients right now. And Uber is probably
pretty busy setting up their" research center.
Uber's relationship with CMU is quite different from a partnership
it established in August with the University of Arizona. That
collaboration, similarly focused on mapping and vehicle safety
technology, has already produced research that is underway.
Thomas Koch, dean of the College of Optical Sciences, declined to
provide more specifics, saying only the relationship with Uber was
based on ongoing, funded research and that the company did not make
a financial gift nor hire college staff.
Andrew Moore, dean of CMU's School of Computer Science, said the
university had received Uber's $5.5 million gift and will use it to
fund a chaired professorship and PhD students.
Moore said the strategic partnership announced last year has not
come together. "This is just something we haven't gotten around to,"
he said. "We all have many priorities."
CMU also lost critical revenue last year after Uber hired away
scientists who were receiving funding to lead research projects.
Projects conducted at the National Robotics Engineering Center
brought in an average of $27 million annually for fiscal years
2011-2015, according to CMU. Funding dropped to a projected $14
million for the current fiscal year, but is expected to go up to $17
million in the coming fiscal year.
"A year later, I'm very happy how this all ended out," Moore said.
(Editing by Sue Horton, Editing by Franklin Paul)
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