Intel Testing Self-Driving Cars In Europe Later This Year As Part Of Big Project Ahead Of Mobileye Acquisition

Intel is slated to launch self-driving test vehicles in Europe later this year as part of its new venture after acquiring Israeli tech company Mobileye. The cars the chipmaker will use are from BMW, another partner in this big project.

On Monday, Intel revealed that it has agreed to purchase Mobileye — a company known for its autonomous driving, anti-collision and other driving solutions — for $15.3 billion. The announcement is seen as a desperate move by the renowned chipmaker to venture into the autonomous-driving sector after missing its chance to enter the mobile phones industry, as per Reuters.

The combination of Intel and Mobileye is deemed fitting for both companies have what it takes to create top-of-the-line technologies for driverless vehicles. Mobileye is well-rounded in terms of creating self-driving software, while Intel already has an established reputation in making hardware chips. The Israeli company currently utilizes STM chips for the products it provides auto manufacturers with. With Intel’s acquisition, Mobileye is expected to make a switch to Intel chips by 2020.

To slowly but surely realize its goal of becoming the leaders in self-driving technology, Intel and Mobileye have tapped German automaker BMW, so they could bring 40 self-driving cars on European roads in the second half of 2017. "Put just one million autonomous vehicles on the road and you have the data equivalent of half the world's population," Intel CEO Briann Krzanich was quoted as saying by Apple Insider. "Our strategy is to make Intel the driving force of the data revolution across every technology and every industry. We are a DATA company. The businesses we focus on, and deliver solutions to, create, use and analyze massive amounts of data."

The acquisition also entails the integration of Intel’s Automated Driving Group (ADG) into Mobileye. This means the California-headquartered team will be relocated to Israel. "Combining forces will help accelerate our plans and lower our execution risks,” Mobileye founders Amnon Shashua and Ziv Aviram noted in the memo to their employees. "We aim to become the leading team in autonomous driving. We want to make an impact on the world and this acquisition will enable us to accomplish that."

Prior to collaborating with Intel, Mobileye used to be the supplier of vision systems for Elon Musk’s Tesla Motors. However, the two companies ended their relationship last summer after Tesla learned of the death of a Tesla Model S driver who was using the Autopilot system prior a fatal accident.