May 10, 2018

Former S.F. transportation official has left Waymo

Waymo self-driving Chrysler Pacific Hybrid minivan. Photo: Waymo

Tim Papandreou, a strategic partnerships manager at Waymo, Alphabet's self-driving car unit, has recently left the company, a spokesperson confirmed to Axios.

Why it matters: Papandreou, who joined Waymo (then still part of the Alphabet's moonshot division called X) in 2016, was a big get for the company. He spent several years working for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, and led its failed bid for a $50 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation in a national contest called the “Smart Cities Challenge." No word yet on where he's headed.

The story has been updated to correct Papandreou's job title at Waymo from head of strategic partnerships.

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Axios

WHO won't call coronavirus a pandemic as cases spread

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens.

The World Health Organization will not yet call the coronavirus a pandemic, claiming that needs across affected countries are too varied and the classification would increase fear, per a briefing Monday.

The big picture: As South Korea and Italy stepped up emergency measures in efforts to thwart the spread of the virus, WHO expressed concern about infections with no clear link to China. COVID-19 has killed at least 2,620 people and infected almost 80,000 others, with all but 27 deaths occurring in mainland China.

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Axios

Situational awareness

Vanessa Bryant delivers a tearful tribute to her husband Kobe and daughter Gianna. Photo: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

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Alayna Treene

Democrats demand new Russia sanctions over 2020 election interference

Putin and Trump. Photo: Kremlin Press Office/Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Senate Democratic leaders will send a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Monday afternoon demanding they sanction Russia — and potentially Russian President Vladimir Putin himself — for attempting to influence the 2020 presidential election.

Why it matters: The letter follows reports that a senior intelligence official briefed Congress that Russia is again interfering in the November election to help Trump. White House national security adviser Robert O'Brien repeatedly rejected that assessment on Sunday, and CNN later reported that the briefer may have overstated the intelligence community's evidence about Russia's goals.

Go deeper1 hour ago - Politics & Policy