By Michael Elkins
Autonomous trucking company, TuSimple (NASDAQ:TSP) announced late Thursday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the company has renamed Co-founder Cheng Lu to his former role as CEO effective immediately. The move comes after the self-driving trucking company fired Lu’s predecessor, Xiaodi Hou, following an internal probe that showed some employees had ties and shared information with a China-backed firm.
Co-founder Xiaodi Hou, who was fired as CEO and chairman on Oct. 30, and co-founder Mo Chen combined their super-voting power as the startup’s largest shareholders to rout Chairman Brad Buss and three other independent directors, removing them from the board, leaving only Hou, who named Chen and Lu to board seats Thursday with Mo Chen as executive chairman of the board.
"I'm returning as TuSimple's CEO with a sense of urgency to put our company back on track," new CEO Lu said in a statement.
Lu replaces Ersin Yumer, the vice president of operations who has been serving as its interim CEO since the board fired Hou on Oct. 31. In a statement after his firing, Xiaodi Hou denied any wrongdoing and said the move was "without cause."
Restoring Lu is an attempt to stabilize the company. Practically the entire leadership team under Lu departed before and after Hou assumed the roles of CEO and chairman.
“We’ve dealt with turmoil this past year, and it’s critical that we stabilize operations, regain the trust of our stakeholders and provide the talented team at TuSimple with the support and leadership they deserve,” Lu said. “I am committed to being open and transparent on our progress as we move forward.”
The shuffle leaves TuSimple in violation of Nasdaq listing rules that require a majority of independent directors. The company said it will return to compliance before a delisting of its stock would occur.
Shares of TSP are down 3.7% in pre-market trading on Friday.