July 16, 2019—Volkswagen is now investing around $2.6 billion in Ford’s autonomous vehicle partner, Argo AI, in a deal that values the startup at $7 billion, according to Market Watch.
The $2.6 billion investment in Argo includes $1 billion in capital funding and the autonomous-driving division in Munich, which the companies placed at $1.6 billion.
Ford and VW started talking last year, leading to January’s deal to partner on vans and trucks, with the EV and self-driving talks growing from these early discussions. Both companies have said they are not interested in cross-ownership deals.
AlixPartners LLP, a consulting firm, forecasts that about $45 billion will be spent on developing autonomous vehicles globally by 2025.
