Qualcomm has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Autotalks, a fabless semiconductor company dedicated to vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.
Qualcomm expects the acquisition to strengthen its Snapdragon Digital Chassis connected car technology portfolio offering by accelerating adoption timelines of V2X technologies.
Autotalks provides automotive qualified dual-mode global V2X solutions compatible with multiple V2X standards that are designed to reduce collisions and improve mobility. The combination of Autotalks' products with Qualcomm's 20 years of automotive industry experience and commitment to V2X aims to help accelerate the development and adoption of V2X solutions to improve traffic efficiency and help with driver and road user safety, Qualcomm indicated.
Through the acquisition, the production-ready, dual mode, Autotalks standalone safety solutions will be incorporated into Qualcomm Technologies' expanding Snapdragon Digital Chassis product portfolio, the company's comprehensive set of cloud-connected automotive platforms.
"We have been investing in V2X research, development and deployment since 2017 and believe that as the automotive market matures, a standalone V2X safety architecture will be needed for enhanced road user safety, as well as smart transportation systems," said Nakul Duggal, senior VP & GM of automotive for Qualcomm Technologies. "We share Autotalks' decades-long experience and commitment to build V2X technologies and products with a focus on solving real-world road user safety challenges. We look forward to working together to deliver global V2X solutions that will help accelerate time-to-market and enable mass market adoption of this very important safety technology."
"It has been our mission to revolutionize safety for the transportation and automotive industry through our V2X solutions," said Hagai Zyss, CEO of Autotalks. "We are confident that by combining our knowledge and expertise, we will not only deliver strong V2X products that will enhance transportation efficiency and safety for road users but will accelerate widespread adoption of V2X. We look forward to serving the auto industry together with Qualcomm and to bring the best technologies to market."
"We look forward to working alongside both Qualcomm Technologies and Autotalks to not only advance intelligent mobility for the industry, but to help make driving safer and more efficient with V2X technologies," said Douglas Cochrane, head of product line telematics at Continental Automotive, in Qualcomm's statement.
Executives from Cariad (a Volkswagen Group company), General Motors, Harman, Quectel, Renault, Rolling Wireless and Wistron NeWeb were also cited in the same statement as expressing their support for Qualcomm's planned acquisition of Autotalks.
