cars news 10: Intel to Buy Driverless Tech Company Mobileye for $15.3 Billion

Intel has announced its intention to acquire Mobileye, a driverless technology company that has been linked with BMW, and until last year, Tesla.

Intel will blend its expertise in hardware chips with Mobileye’s collision detection software to form a comprehensive portfolio of autonomous driving technologies. The new entity will be led by Mobileye Chairman Amnon Shashua.

Created in 1999, Mobileye now works with more than 25 automaker partners. The company has secured 70 percent of the global market for driver-assistance and anti-collision systems, reports Reuters.

Last summer, BMW announced it would work with Intel and Mobileye to bring self-driving cars to mass production by 2021. At the time, the companies said they would make a common technology platform available to other automakers.

Mobileye had also partnered with Tesla on autonomous technology before the collaboration ended unceremoniously last year. Mobileye’s Shashua criticized Tesla for “pushing the envelope in terms of safety,” and reports said the tech firm grew uncomfortable with the automaker’s contradictory messages about Autopilot, particularly in the wake of a fatal Model S crash in Florida. Meanwhile, the automaker claimed Mobileye couldn’t keep up with Tesla’s product changes.

Acquiring Mobileye could launch Intel to the forefront of the autonomous car technology industry. The deal, valued at $15.3 billion, is expected to close in the next nine months.

Source: Intel, Mobileye, Reuters