GOOG Alphabet Inc

By Greg Bensinger and Jack Nicas 

Uber Technologies Inc. on Monday said a longtime Alphabet Inc. executive has left its board amid increasing competition between the two tech companies.

David Drummond, an Uber director since August 2013, stepped down several weeks ago as concerns over conflicts of interest between the two companies mounted, Uber confirmed to The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Drummond, who joined Alphabet's Google in 2002, is senior vice president of corporate development of Alphabet and chairman of its investment arms, including GV, which was formerly called Google Ventures. He helped oversee GV's $250 million investment in Uber in 2013.

"I recently stepped down from Uber's board given the overlap between the two companies," said Mr. Drummond, 53 years old, in an emailed statement. "GV remains an enthusiastic investor and Google will continue to partner with Uber."

Alphabet and Uber are in a race to develop and commercialize self-driving cars. San Francisco-based Uber is set to begin a test of self-driving taxis in Pittsburgh using its technology, while Alphabet has considered testing its self-driving cars as part of a ride-hailing service of its own, according to people familiar with the matter.

Earlier this month, Uber also said it bought Ottomotto LLC, a driverless-truck startup founded by former Alphabet employees, to help it catch up to Alphabet's driverless-car technology.

There are also signs that Alphabet is pushing into Uber's traditional ride-sharing business. The company recently launched a pilot for certain users of its traffic app Waze to share rides together to work in the San Francisco area.

Technology news site The Information reported earlier that Mr. Drummond had been kept from attending meetings and denied certain sensitive information about Uber's strategic initiatives.

David Krane, head of Alphabet investment arm GV, remains a board observer at Uber.

Write to Greg Bensinger at greg.bensinger@wsj.com and Jack Nicas at jack.nicas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 29, 2016 19:07 ET (23:07 GMT)

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