Uber loses another top executive as Marakby departs

Sherif Marakby, vice president of global vehicle programs at Uber, left his post at the ride-hailing company on Monday.

Marakby, 51, who joined Uber in April 2016 after a 25-year career at Ford Motor Co., helped the tech company launch its self-driving ride-hailing pilot program in Pittsburgh. A source close the matter said Marakby will be taking a break before deciding what comes next.

“Self-driving is one of the most interesting challenges I’ve worked on in my career, and I’m grateful to have contributed  to what will soon be a safer future for everyone," Marakby said in a statement.

Marakby’s move to Uber after serving as Ford’s director of global electronics and engineering was viewed as a merger between legacy automakers and the Silicon Valley upstarts looking to transform the industry.

In the past three months, Uber has experienced an exodus of executives -- including former president Jeff Jones and former head of communications Rachel Whetstone -- as it deals with internal issues as well as a lawsuit from self-driving competitor Waymo, the Google affiliate.

In March, Gary Marcus stepped down from his post as head of Uber’s AI Labs, four months after the unit was created.

Marakby’s departure was not related to the Waymo lawsuit, an Uber spokesperson said.