Self-driving start-up Argo ties up with Germany's Volkswagen in $2.6bn investment

Argo AI, the self-driving start-up tightly aligned with Ford Motor, completed an expected tie-up with Volkswagen involving a $2.6 billion (Dh9.54bn) investment from the German car maker.

VW’s investment includes a $1bn cash infusion and the folding of its $1.6bn Autonomous Intelligent Driving unit into Argo. It is part of a broader alliance between VW and Ford to jointly develop autonomous and electric vehicles, a partnership first announced last July. The deal vaults the world’s first and sixth largest automakers into the top ranks of a race to deploy fully self-driving cars, along with Alphabet’s Waymo and General Motors’ Cruise.

With the addition of VW’s autonomous unit, Argo will have a global workforce of more than 1,000 and a new European outpost in Munich, where it will test its driver-less technology, Bryan Salesky, the start-up’s chief executive, wrote in a blog.

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“This news not only solidifies our well-capitalised position, but differentiates us as the only self-driving technology platform company with partnerships and commercial agreements for deployment across the US and Europe,” Mr Salesky wrote. “Our mission is built on the importance of developing trust in self-driving technology.”

The coronavirus outbreak has set back Ford’s plan to launch robo-taxis and driver-less delivery pods next year. The car maker now says it will start using Argo’s technology in 2022 so that it has more time to study the pandemic’s impact on consumer attitudes toward self-driving and shared vehicles.

“While our companies are sharing Argo AI’s technology development costs, Ford will remain independent and fiercely competitive,” John Lawler, chief executive of Ford’s autonomous-vehicle unit, wrote in a separate blog post. “Sharing the development costs with Volkswagen doesn’t mean Ford is reducing its overall spend in the autonomous-vehicle space. Instead, we are reallocating the money toward our unique customer experience.”

Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

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Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

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Manchester City (0) v Liverpool (3)

Uefa Champions League, quarter-final, second leg

Where: Etihad Stadium
When: Tuesday, 10.45pm
Live on beIN Sports HD

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Key facilities

Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
Premier League-standard football pitch
400m Olympic running track
NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
600-seat auditorium
Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
Specialist robotics and science laboratories
AR and VR-enabled learning centres
Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills

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Things Heard & Seen

Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini

Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton

2/5

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Profile of Whizkey

Date founded: 04 November 2017

Founders: Abdulaziz AlBlooshi and Harsh Hirani

Based: Dubai, UAE

Number of employees: 10

Sector: AI, software

Cashflow: Dh2.5 Million

Funding stage: Series A

Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

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How to increase your savings

Have a plan for your savings.
Decide on your emergency fund target and once that's achieved, assign your savings to another financial goal such as saving for a house or investing for retirement.
Decide on a financial goal that is important to you and put your savings to work for you.
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- Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching

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