VW and Ford strengthen autonomous ties
Volkswagen is investing $2.6bn (£2bn) in Argo AI, a self-driving start-up tightly aligned with Ford.
The investment includes a $1bn cash injection while also merging its own $1.6bn autonomous intelligent driving unit into Argo.
This is part of a wider alliance between VW and Ford to jointly develop autonomous and electric vehicles.
Argo will now have a workforce of more than 1,000, as well as a new site in Munich.
John Lawler, CEO of Ford’s autonomous-vehicle unit, said: “While our companies are sharing Argo AI’s technology development costs, Ford will remain independent and fiercely competitive. Sharing the development costs with Volkswagen doesn’t mean Ford is reducing its overall spend in the autonomous-vehicle space. Instead, we are reallocating the money toward our unique customer experience.”
