Ride-hailing giant Uber Technologies has recently finalized a $680 million acquisition of Otto Motors, an Israeli startup specializing in converting normal trucks into autonomous ones, Israel Hayom learned Thursday. Otto was founded by former Google, Apple, and Tesla employees, among them Israeli entrepreneur Lior Ron. The company develops artificial intelligence, cameras, and sensors that are attached to the vehicle, giving the truck full driving capacity without need of a driver. Otto trucks are currently undergoing trial stages in the San Francisco Bay area According to the Bloomberg news agency, the San Francisco-based multinational online transportation network, whose service are available in 66 countries and 507 cities worldwide, inked its deal with Otto in July. Some 90 of Otto's employees hold 20% of the company's shares and will receive $136 million as part of the deal. According to the report, Otto co-founder Anthony Levandowski will head Uber's self-driving division, comprising both Otto's self-driving truck unit and Uber's own fast-growing autonomous unit, reporting directly to Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Kalanick called Anthony "one of the world's leading autonomous engineers," having helped create "Ghostrider," an autonomous motorcycle on display at the Smithsonian. The partnership, Kalanick said, will help advance self-driving car technology. This, along with a partnership with Volvo that Uber announced along with the Otto deal, will develop technology that will be a crucial part in curtailing one million yearly deaths from accidents on roads, he said. Otto's online blog cited the potential for the merger to transform the trucking industry. As one in three truckers get into a serious accident and 90% of truckers leave their jobs each year, this technology can "provide a path to sustainable commercial transportation." On Wednesday, the Ford Motor Company announced it had acquired SAIPS, an Israeli startup founded in 2013 that focuses on machine learning and image and video processing technology essential to the development of self-driving cars, for an undisclosed amount. At a press event in Palo Alto Ford said the acquisition is part of its efforts to achieve its goal of launching its own autonomous car line by 2021. SAIPS will operate as an independent Ford subsidiary, and continue to serve its existing customers in Israel and around the world. The SAIPS website said the company was "proud to join Ford Motor Company family and excited to become part of Ford's autonomous vehicle R&D team!" "I'm proud of the company's employees, who indisputably constitute one of the best algorithms groups in Israel," SAIPS co-founder and CEO Udy Danino said in a statement, "We're delighted and excited to join the Ford family in general, and especially its autonomous car program. It is difficult to imagine a more exciting combination of a product with such a major effect on the world we live in and an algorithmic challenge on the cutting edge of technology. We're thrilled to discover in Ford a professional environment that fosters innovation and dynamism, and we're enthusiastic about the potential cooperation and our common future." Israeli startups developing driving and driverless technology have long since snagged the interest of global automotive giants. In May, Volkswagen AG invested $300 million in Uber competitor Gett Inc. Previously known as GetTaxi, the Israeli-based startup connects customers with taxi drivers using the company's GPS-based smartphone app. Gett said it would provide Volkswagen with the technology to expand beyond car ownership and into ride hailing and car sharing.
BMW AG, Intel Corp. and Israel's Mobileye NV recently announced they would be teaming up to build and commercialize driverless cars. The companies said they could have autonomous vehicles in production by 2021. BMW's iNext electric sedan will serve as the platform for the technology. Intel makes the computer processors necessary to operate self-driving cars, while Mobileye makes advanced camera systems. The vehicles would likely be used by ride-hailing fleets.
