B_B schreef op 22 maart 2016 09:01:
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Israel’s mapping apps plot world domination
4 HOURS AGO by: Murad Ahmed
When Israel’s tech start-ups tackle transportation, they think less about the local commute and more about world domination.
In 2013, Waze, an Israeli company that offers real-time traffic information on its popular navigation app, was acquired by Google for $1.1bn. Being snapped up by the Silicon Valley company was seen as a great result, as it was then the country’s biggest high-tech deal by value.
Now, an even bigger Israeli transportation technology company has emerged. Mobileye, the world’s leading supplier of driver-assisted technology is listed in New York and has a market capitalisation of about $6.5bn. It wants to go one better than Waze — by aiming to beat Google in the race to building driverless cars.
Over January and February, the Nasdaq-listed company announced deals with carmakers Renault Nissan, Volkswagen and General Motors to build the digital maps autonomous vehicles need to navigate.
The partnerships mean that Jerusalem-based Mobileye is working with a third of the international motor industry at a time when Google is struggling to persuade suspicious manufacturers to use its technology to create driverless cars.
“It’s one thing to come and say: ‘I developed a technology,’” says Amon Shashua, Mobileye’s chairman and co-founder. “It’s another thing to say, ‘I have already partnered with one-third of the global industry’.”
The success of Waze and Mobileye has spurred on a spate of technology start ups in the country focused on transport. What stands out is their long-term and global ambition.
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