Nokia said Tuesday that it will buy Withings, a French company that makes a range of health- and fitness-centric wearables and connected gadgets for 170 million euros ($191 million), in an effort to jump into the consumer digital-health market. And while the move may sound like an odd one for the former cell-phone giant, it could turn out to be a smart bet.
It’s evident here at the CES show that the automakers are moving quickly toward offering a real self-driving car, but it’s the absence of detailed mapping data that might delay its arrival on the roads.
Indeed, much of the focus has been on the development of better sensors and radar systems, and companies like Audi, Mercedes, and Ford have made big strides with the technology. Ford CEO Mark Fields told VentureBeat that he believes a fully-autonomous vehicle will hit the market within five years.
Two years after shuttering its research and development operations in Israel, device manufacturer Nokia is back. The Finnish phone maker announced that it has bought NICE System’s 3D geolocation technology, developed in Israel, planning to use its new facilities as a development center for automation technology and 3D modeling.
With its handset business in Microsoft’s pocket, Nokia is looking for its next big business opportunity — and it may have found it in connected cars.
The Finnish tech company today announced the launch of a $100 million “Connected Car fund” managed by Nokia Growth Partners. The fund will invest in companies poised for growth in the intelligent vehicle sector, the company said.
For its smart car fund, Nokia Growth Partners will “work closely” with Nokia’s HERE connected driving platform, which Nokia didn’t sell off to Microsoft.
After Microsoft closes its purchase of Nokia’s devices and services businesses in the coming weeks, Nokia’s chief technology officer, Henry Tirri, will be part of a new organization. The new outfit, known as Nokia Advanced Technologies, will be expected to take better advantage of Nokia’s vast patent portfolio and its richly financed R&D organization (see “Can This Man Work Magic?”).
