Silicon Valley giant Intel Corp on Wednesday announced plans for a fleet of self-driving cars following the completion of its purchase of Israeli autonomous technology firm Mobileye NV.
One day after closing the US$15 billion deal to buy Mobileye, which specializes in driver assistance systems, Intel said it would begin rolling out fully autonomous vehicles later this year for testing in Europe, Israel and the US.
The fleet is eventually to have more than 100 vehicles, Intel said.
The testing in real-world conditions “provides immediate feedback and will accelerate delivery of technologies and solutions for highly and fully autonomous vehicles,” said Mobileye cofounder Amnon Shashua, who is to run the unit for Intel.
“Our goal is to develop autonomous vehicle technology that can be deployed anywhere,” Shashua added.
The Intel test fleet is to include various types and makes of vehicles, and capitalize on Mobileye’s expertise in computer vision, mapping and sensing.
Intel, which has been expanding beyond its core of computer chipmaking, wants its technology to become an engine powering self-driving systems across the spectrum of vehicle makers.
“We want to enable automakers to deliver driverless cars faster while reducing costs,” Shashua said.
Intel said the vehicles would offer “level 4” autonomy, which under industry standards represents a “high” level of autonomy just below the fully automated “level 5.”
Most major automakers and several other technology firms have been stepping up efforts on autonomous driving in recent years, contending these systems will eliminate the vast majority of road accidents.
Apple Inc has a testing permit in California.
German luxury automaker Daimler AG and automotive parts supplier Bosch AG have announced plans to work together to create completely driverless cars in the next few years.
US car rental giant Avis Budget Group Inc earlier this year announced it would team up with Waymo LLC on self-driving cars being tested on Arizona roads, while Tesla Inc boasts that all its models are built with the hardware for self-driving in the event regulators give the technology a green light.
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