Hou Xiaodi, co-founder of self-driving truck firm TuSimple, has been fired from his roles as chief executive and president at the company, according to a securities filing published on Monday. The news comes after the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that the San Diego, California-based company is facing federal investigation over the alleged unlawful funding and transferal of technology to Hydron, a separate trucking startup formed by Chen Mo, another TuSimple co-founder. However, Hou has denied any wrongdoing, and several insiders told TechCrunch that the firing is more related to Hou’s management style than news of an investigation. TuSimple went public on the Nasdaq in April, 2021, becoming the world’s first publicly-listed company in the autonomous driving field. [TechCrunch]
