Intel has announced the acquisition of Mobileye. A company that currently develops technology for self-driving cars. The two have been working together since the beginning of the year, and it looks like the partnership is working out.
Mobileye was involved in Intel’s work on the BMW iNEXT self-driving platform. That work appears to be untouched by this acquisition; although Intel is saying that it will expand the scope of the partnership. According to the microprocessor maker, the idea is to build a scalable architecture that can be adopted by any car maker.
The new combined group of Mobileye and Intel’s own internal team will be headquartered in Jerusalem.
Intel says that it will be paying $15.3 billion (about RM68 billion) for Mobileye. This sum is offset by the fact that Intel believes that the driverless car industry will be worth some $70 billion (about RM311 billion) by 2030.
Intel has been busy diversifying its business as of late. The company has been looking into expanding its offerings for the Internet-of-Things, and has developed a strange obsession with drones.
A new emphasis on embedded devices makes sense as PC sales continue to slide. Laptops and gaming computers can only prop the market up so much, and it is in Intel’s best interests to look elsewhere to stabilise its financial outlook.
[Source: Intel]
