Intel acquires Israeli urban mobility startup Moovit for $900M

Intel on Monday said it had purchased Israeli urban mobility startup Moovit for $900 million.

The California-based chipmaker said the purchase buttresses its plan to become a complete mobility provider.

The acquisition deepens Intel's reach in Israel, where the company has spent billions buying other companies, and where it has a chip-making factory.

Intel paid $15 billion in 2017 for Mobileye, an Israeli company at the forefront of autonomous vehicle technology.

That purchase created another major player in self-driving technology and strengthened predictions that autonomous cars will some day change the way people commute.

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Moovit will join the Mobileye team, accelerating its "ability to truly revolutionise transportation", Intel said.

Using information from users and bus and train schedules, Moovit's app provides urban transit solutions, combining public transport schedules and options with taxis, bicycles, electric scooters and more, to provide a comprehensive picture of how best to travel.

Combining the daily mobility habits and needs of millions of Moovit users with the state-of-the-art, safe, affordable and eco-friendly transportation enabled by self-driving vehicles, we will be able to make cities better places to live in, said Moovit CEO Nir Erez.

Moovit has more than 800 million users and offers services in 3,100 cities across 102 countries, according to Intel.

Earlier in March, The Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, Intel India, and Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SINE)-IIT Bombay have announced the third edition of Plugin, a one-year collaborative accelerator programme for hardware and systems software startups.

According to a statement, 11 startups have been selected from over 200 entries from across India in areas of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), security, and others. These will receive mentoring and coaching, access to labs for tools and platforms, technical and financial support, local and international ecosystem connect and visibility.

(Disclaimer: Additional background information has been added to this PTI copy for context)

(Edited by Teja Lele Desai)