Intel Agrees To Buy Mobileye For USD15.3 Billion In Bid For Self-Driving Car Market

Computing giant Intel has confirmed on Monday that it will be buying out Israeli autonomous vehicle technology firm Mobileye for USD15.3 billion. Reuters said the acquisition will mark U.S. chipmaker’s challenge for top spot in the self-driving automobile industry against rivals Nvidia Corp and Qualcomm Inc, who have already established as the go-to companies in developing driverless systems.

The press release read, “The combination is expected to accelerate innovation for the automotive industry and position Intel as a leading technology provider in the fast-growing market for highly and fully autonomous vehicles. Intel estimates the vehicle systems, data and services market opportunity to be up to $70 billion by 2030. The transaction extends Intel’s strategy to invest in data-intensive market opportunities that build on the company’s strengths in computing and connectivity from the cloud, through the network, to the device.”

TechCrunch said Mobileye has long established itself as a leader in computer vision for autonomous driving technology, which includes sensor fusion, mapping, front- and rear-facing camera tech. Moreover, the company in 2018 will crowdsource data for its high-definition maps and develop driving policy intelligence underlying driving decisions. The press call also revealed that Intel will immediately have relationships with Mobileye’s 27 car manufacturers going into 2017, including its 10 production programs with Audi, BMW and others.

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich said in a statement, “Mobileye brings the industry’s best automotive-grade computer vision and strong momentum with automakers and suppliers. Together, we can accelerate the future of autonomous driving with improved performance in a cloud-to-car solution at a lower cost for automakers.”