Qualcomm acquires Israeli auto-chip maker startup Autotalks in a $350-400 million deal

Qualcomm announced on Monday it would buy Israeli auto-chip maker startup Autotalks. While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Qualcomm reportedly paid approximately $350-400 million for the company.

The announcement comes two years after Qualcomm partnered with investment firm SSW Partners to buy Swedish company Veoneer for $4.5 billion in cash. Veoneer was an American-Swedish provider of automotive technology based in Stockholm, Sweden that produces sensors, control units, software, and systems for Advanced Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS).

As electric vehicles and automated features become more prevalent in the automotive industry, there is a surge in the number of chips required by automakers. This trend has made the automotive market a crucial area of growth for chip manufacturers.

Autotalks is a chipmaker that specializes in producing dedicated chips for vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications technology. Their chips are utilized in both manned and driverless vehicles to enhance road safety.

“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,” Nakul Duggal, senior vice-president – automotive, Qualcomm Technologies, said in a statement.

Last year, Qualcomm announced that its automotive business “pipeline” had grown to $30 billion, surpassing the earlier figure by over $10 billion since late July. The impressive growth was attributed to the company’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis product, which is employed by car manufacturers and their suppliers. The Snapdragon Digital Chassis is capable of offering assisted and autonomous driving technology, as well as in-car entertainment and cloud connectivity.

Qualcomm also added that the acquisition was made through its unit Qualcomm Technologies.

“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 bringing the best technologies to market.”

Autotalks was founded in 2008 by Onn Haran. The HaMerkaz, Israel-based company makes fabless semiconductors and system-on-a-chip technology aimed at preventing vehicle crashes. Autotalks also provides automotive-qualified dual-mode global V2X solutions compatible with multiple V2X standards which are designed to reduce collisions and improve mobility. The company has raised a total of $110 million to date and employs 120 people.

Autotalks team