COMPLAINT
1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
♼
LAW
OFFICES C
OTCHETT
,
P
ITRE
&
M
C
C
ARTHY
,
LLP
Plaintiffs Brogan BamBrogan, Dr. Knut Sauer, David Pendergast, and William Mulholland, by their undersigned counsel, hereby complain against Defendants Hyperloop Technologies, Inc. (d/b/a Hyperloop One)
(“Hyperloop
One
”), Shervin Pishevar (“Shervin”), Joseph Lonsdale, Robert
Lloyd, A
fshin Pishevar (“Afshin”), and DOES 1
-50, and allege as follows:
I.
INTRODUCTION
1.
Hyperloop One bears all the hallmarks of an exciting new company destined to change the world by developing a 21
st
century transportation system designed to move passengers and cargo in a fast, safe, and energy efficient manner. Its world-class team of engineers and technicians came together to develop the technology required to commercialize the ingenious hyperloop concept, and has made lightning-quick progress towards a full-scale prototype. That technological promise, however, is being strangled by the mismanagement and greed of the venture capitalists who control the company. 2.
Like many of their colleagues, Plaintiffs gave up higher-paying, secure job opportunities
to join (and in BamBrogan’s case, co
-found) Hyperloop One, because they believed in the groundbreaking potential of the hyperloop idea. Plaintiff BamBrogan was a co-founder and the Chief Technology Officer of Hyperloop One. Plaintiff Dr. Knut Sauer was Hyperloop
One’s
Vice President of Business Development. Plaintiff David Pendergast was Hyperloop One
’s
Assistant General Counsel. Plaintiff William Mulholland was Hyperloop One
’s Vice President of
Finance. 3.
Over the course of
Plaintiffs’ employment
, it became apparent that those in control of the company continually used the work of the team to augment their personal brands, enhance their romantic lives, and line their pockets (and those of their family members). Those with the expertise to bring the hyperloop concept to fruition
—
the team that has done an incredible job building out hardware with their heads down and hands in the dirt
—
have been systematically
marginalized, while the “money men”
who do not understand the technology spent little time seeking to understand its potential, focusing instead on puffery
—
turning the company into a marketing-driven exercise, instead of the engineering-driven enterprise it should be.