To Compete With Tesla, Volkswagen Injects $2.3B In Chinese Autonomous Driving Venture

Volkswagen AG's VWAGY software unit Cariad will take a 60% stake in a new venture with Chinese technology firm Horizon Robotics for over $2 billion.
The German carmaker will invest $1 billion in Horizon Robotics and €1.3 billion in the joint venture.
The companies will develop technology that can integrate numerous functions for autonomous driving onto a single chip that will be available only in China.
The venture will mean Volkswagen has a supplier in each significant region, Reuters reported, given its existing supply relationships with Qualcomm Inc QCOM and STMicrolectronics NV STM.
Cariad will play an active role in developing the chip technology with Horizon Robotics. The know-how will be shared across the Volkswagen Group, said Ralf Brandstaetter, Volkswagen China's chief.
"That's why this cooperation with Horizon Robotics is deeper," he added.
Horizon Robotics' investors include carmakers like BYD BYDDF BYDDY, Great Wall Motors, and Intel Corporation INTC.
It is part of a broader push by Volkswagen to strengthen its software offering in the Chinese electric vehicle market, where it lags competitors - BYD and Tesla Inc TSLA.
The transaction will complete in the first half of 2023.