A former Uber executive faces allegations in a fresh lawsuit that he stole company secrets from a Californian logistics firm before launching his own startup.
Earlier in 2020, Fraser Robinson announced he had raised $15 million in Series A funding for his logistics startup Beacon, after being backed by household names like Jeff Bezos and Eric Schmidt. Robinson was formerly head of business for EMEA at Uber.
Founded by Robinson in 2018, UK-based Beacon's stated aim is to optimize the international shipping industry. Robinson previously told Business Insider that the industry had failed to digitize in an increasingly online world.
In a 49-page complaint, filed Tuesday with the US District Court for the Central District of California, logistics firm Vanguard alleges Robinson stole confidential information while a member of its board, which he later used to launch Beacon.
Vanguard accused Robinson of stealing trade secrets, fraud, and breach of contract in its complaint.
The suit alleged Robinson approached Vanguard in late 2017 offering his services as a consultant, but used his position to gather information about Vanguard's operations.
The complaint reads: "Robinson promised [Vanguard's owners] they could count on him to help shape, market, and sell Vanguard's cutting-edge, online digital platform, as part of [their] plan to expand Vanguard's global business."
The suit claims Robinson performed a "charade" as a consultant and advisor to Vanguard while setting up his own firm. "While still serving these roles at Vanguard...Robinson sought to renegotiate the terms of his engagement, including for example by attempting to reposition himself as a 'C-suite candidate,' 'co-founder,' and/or 'co-owner.'"
Vanguard's filing goes on to claim Robinson "brought in" Uber cofounder Dmitri Izmailov to help him "perform his work", and worked together to gather trade secrets and confidential information about the company's inner workings.
A Beacon spokesperson told Business Insider that Vanguard's claims would be "robustly defended" against in court.
"We are surprised to hear that Vanguard have filed these proceedings," the spokesperson added. "The papers have not yet been issued by the court and have not been served. What we have seen so far is an ill-thought-out action which is entirely without merit, and which has been brought in the wrong jurisdiction."
