Intel buys Moovit app for $900m to boost bet on robotic cars
Intel is buying transportation planning service Moovit for $900 million as the world’s largest computer chip maker moves further down the road in its effort to build self-driving cars.
The deal announced Monday gives Intel another tool to use in its push to become a major player in the race to create the technology needed to build fleets of taxis that will be able to transport passengers without a human driver behind the wheel.
Moovit, an 8-year-old company based in Israel, makes an app that compiles data from public transit systems, ride-hailing services and other resources to help its 800 million users plan the best ways to get around. Intel plans to combine Moovit with Mobileye, a self-driving car specialist that Intel bought for about $15 billion in 2017.
Since that deal, Mobileye’s revenue has ballooned from $210 million in 2017 to $879 million last year. That’s a reflection of the big bets being placed on automated driving by both major technology companies, such as Google spinoff Waymo and Apple, and automakers such as General Motors and Toyota.
“Intel’s purpose is to create world-changing technology that enriches the lives of every person on earth,” said the company’s CEO Bob Swan.
Despite its rapid growth, Mobileye still only accounts for a sliver of Intel’s annual revenue of $72 billion.
Intel, is based in Santa Clara, California, is upping its ante on self-driving cars at a time when many other companies are bracing for an extended economic downturn that has thrust more than 30 million people into the unemployment lines. (AP)