It's rare for federal Judge William Alsup to be late to the bench in San Francisco's District Court. Known for his punctuality, he opened the previous four days of the Waymo v. Uber trial promptly at 7:30 a.m. Yet on Friday, he still hadn't arrived by 7:48 a.m.
Moments later, his black robe flowing around him, Alsup entered the court and made an announcement.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we are going to begin things slightly differently this morning," he said.
And then Alsup told the courtroom's lawyers, Uber and Waymo executives and handful of reporters -- including me -- that Waymo attorney Charles Verhoeven would address the court.
"We've reached a settlement this morning," Verhoeven said.
A collective gasp echoed throughout the room.
The case had been expected to last at least three weeks.
