Volkswagen to buy autonomous driving tech worth $4 billion from Israel company

Volkswagen will buy self-driving software and hardware from Israel’s Innoviz Technologies for $4 billion. Volkswagen's CARIAD technologies group signed a deal with Innoviz that specifies that the Volkswagen Group will use components such as laser-based lidar sensors for its advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving vehicles from mid-decade.

Innoviz Chief Executive and Co-founder Omer Keilaf said in a statement that the team is excited to work with CARIAD's team and be the supplier of LiDAR sensors and perception software for vehicles that will be launched from the middle of the decade. “CARIAD is a leading player in the transformation of the whole automotive space. We are proud to be part of their mission," Keilaf was quoted in a report by Carscoops.

The Israeli technology company claimed that its advanced LiDAR and perception software could see better compared to a human driver as it reduces the possibilities of errors. It also added that it has an agreement of LiDAR with BMW as well. Keilaf shared that the company is hiring a third-party contractor to produce the lidar sensors.

Volkswagen's CARIAD has signed a series of technical partnerships including Bosch, Qualcomm, and STMicroelectronics. Volkswagen had earlier invested $2.6 billion in the US startup Argo AI as a part of the process of the auto major's European self-driving unit that was transferred to Argo. Volkswagen also announced a couple of months ago that it will use Qualcomm chips for the autonomous vehicles that it has planned to develop.