Chipmaker Nvidia Corp. and electronics manufacturer Foxconn, on Tuesday, announced a partnership to develop autonomous vehicle platforms. The Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn will manufacture electronic control units (ECUs) for cars based on Nvidia’s DRIVE Orin chip, made specifically for computing in connected and autonomous vehicles, according to a Reuters report.
Foxconn stated that the ECUs will serve the global automotive market. In recent years, companies developing electric and autonomous cars have struggled to bring products to the market due to rising costs and difficulties in ramping up production. Nvidia said its technology, which includes chips to process information from sensors in real-time, will help Foxconn overcome some of those challenges.
The chipmaker sees a market opportunity of $300 billion in the automotive sector and reported revenue of $251 million in the third quarter from the segment. It said the tie-up will allow it to scale efforts to meet the growing demand for chips made for autonomous and connected vehicles.
Foxconn operates a vehicle manufacturing facility in Ohio. It said its vehicles will contain ECUs based on DRIVE Orin and Nvidia’s DRIVE Hyperion sensors for autonomous driving. Foxconn makes electric vehicles for Lordstown Motors Corp and has a contract to make Fisker Inc’s second car model, PEAR. It is also one of the top manufacturers of Apple Inc products.
