Intel plans to buy collision-avoidance car sensor system maker Mobileye for $14-$15 billion

U.S. chip giant Intel has agreed to buy Israeli technology firm Mobileye for $14-$15 billion, according to TheMarker, an Israeli financial newspaper. The companies will announce the acquisition, the largest ever for an Israeli high-tech company, later on Monday, TheMarker reported on its website. Mobileye is a leading supplier of collision-avoidance car sensor systems.

Neither Intel nor Mobileye were immediately reachable for comment. The two companies are already collaborating with BMW on a project to put a fleet of around 40 self-driving test vehicles on the road in the second half of this year. BMW announced its partnership with the two firms in July, with the goal of developing the capability of introducing fully autonomous vehicles to the market by 2021.

Founded in 1999 with a mission to reduce vehicle injuries and fatalities, Mobileye listed in 2014 on the New York Stock Exchange, where its market cap is $10.6 billion. Goldman Sachs invested $130 million in the company in 2007. This report comes months after Intel created a new organisation dedicated to autonomous driving technologies, called Automated Driving Group (ADG). The move follows close on the heels of an announcement that Intel chips would be used in self-driving cars being made by Delphi and Mobileye.