NASDAQ-listed NXP Semiconductors, a Netherland-based producer of automotive radar sensors, has made a strategic investment in China’s Hawkeye Technology to advance its radar technology for cars, according to an announcement.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
With the strategic tie up, NXP and Hawkeye will now work together to create reference designs to expand their operations across the Chinese market, with the latter expected to provide a suite of technical know-how to the Dutch chipmaker.
Going forward, NXP, whose claim to fame is its chips for car-related applications, will get access to Hawkeye engineering team, a research lab it set up with Southeast University in the Chinese city of Nanjing, and its 77Ghz radar – a long-range sensing technology that enables cars to detect crashes down to sub-millimeter accuracy. All in all, the tie up will help NXP strengthen its position in the Chinese market.
“By partnering with NXP, Hawkeye will focus on providing advanced millimeter wave radar system level solutions as well as comprehensive technical support for Tier 1 customers,” said Alex Shi, co-founder and chief executive, Hawkeye.
NXP president Kurt Sievers, on the other hand, added how the alliance with Hawkeye is evidence of its “determination to continuously invest in the country.”
According to HIS automotive semiconductor market tracker, the automotive semiconductor market was worth $41.8 billion in 2018 and expected to reach $65 billion by 2025, with some downturns expected in between.
NXP, which is aiming for a large-scale commercialization, has previously partnered with other engineering firms in the Asian market. In 2017, it entered into a partnership with HARMAN International, a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, to develop connected car systems for self-driving.
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