Uber自动驾驶出行与配送全球负责人Sarfraz Maredia将于11月16日离职

An Uber Technologies Inc. executive overseeing the company’s global autonomous efforts across ride-hailing and delivery will depart next month, the latest in a string of leadership departures in the division this year.

Sarfraz Maredia, who has been with the company for more than 12 years, is leaving to pursue a top executive role at an undisclosed company outside of the transportation industry, according to an Uber spokesperson. His last day at Uber will be Nov. 16.

During his stint as global head of autonomous mobility and delivery, Uber invested in new technology and infrastructure to support the commercialization of self-driving cars on its app, even though the company isn’t building its own cars and is partnering with robotaxi manufacturers to offer rides. Those efforts include charging, fleet tooling and management, data collection, in-vehicle experience and remote assistance.

Maredia’s responsibilities will be split between Samarth Kejriwal, a senior director who currently oversees driverless vehicle operations and has been with Uber for more than a decade, and Aaron Emrich, who heads up autonomous delivery.

In a companywide email on Tuesday, Chief Executive Officer Dara Khosrowshahi praised Maredia for helping shape several of the businesses that define Uber over his long tenure.

“One of the characteristics that I’ve always appreciated about Sarfraz is that he never needed the easy assignment. When there was a hard problem to solve, a business to build, or a new opportunity we needed to figure out, he raised his hand,” he wrote.

Shares of Uber erased gains to fall less than 1% before markets opened in New York. The stock has declined 13% so far this year through Monday’s close.

Uber’s autonomous division has seen a number of executive departures in a year when key partnerships with Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo and Serve Robotics Inc. unraveled. That’s even as the company has committed more than $10 billion to supporting the commercialization of self-driving technology over the next few years, and is working to offer driverless rides to more customers globally with more than a dozen other partners.

Most of those efforts, which span several cities in the US, Middle East and in Europe, have been limited in scale as they rely on yet-to-be-produced robotaxis or local regulations. Uber has maintained it wants to operate a hybrid marketplace with autonomous vehicles, as well as human drivers and couriers, to meet varying demand throughout the day.

Guy Peterson, who was the head of business development for autonomous partnerships, joined Rivian Automotive Inc.’s bike spinoff, Also, as chief business officer this month. Lando Juarez, who was head of legal for Uber’s autonomous unit, left forBedrock Robotics Inc. in June.

Uber also has conducted multiple rounds of job cuts to simplify operations and reallocate spending into the ride-sharing, delivery and robotaxi businesses. Last month, it axed about 3,300 jobs, 10% of its staff globally, after targeted cuts at its customer service and human resources departments earlier this year.

Read More: Uber to Cut 10% of Jobs, or 3,300 Roles, to Slash Bureaucracy

Maredia, who held roles leading the core US ride-hailing and delivery businesses during his tenure, signaled his confidence in Uber’s autonomous strategy in a separate farewell memo to employees on Tuesday.

“There’s never been more momentum behind our AV efforts than there is today,” he wrote. “Increasingly, our focus will be on scaling AVs in more cities and achieving higher supply density in those markets.”