On Oct 26th 2022 Argo AI (self driving car software company) Shut down due to the failure of generating business and get further investment.
The shut down of Argo AI was unexpected, largely because it had deep pocketed backers likie Ford and VW ($2 billion in cash and $1.6 billion in value of taking over VW’s Autonomous Intelligent Driving subsidiary), several high-profile partners with active pilot programs, a large workforce of top talent and a presence in multiple cities.
It was a compnay considered one of a handful of companies poised with the talent, backing and tech to actually pull of the commercialization of AVs (Autonomous Vehicles).
So why did Argo shut down? Kirsten Korosec from TechCrunch+ assumes that one of the factors that Argo Ai to shut down is that the main backers (Ford and VW) decided to prioritize near-term profits gleaned from advaned driver assistance systems over a still-in-the-works technology. This companies didn’t even figured out a business model for that technology and didn’t generate profit from AV cars.
TechCrunch editor Darrell Etherington makes the argument that this proves self-driving cars are not coming anytime soon.
Symbolically on that same day, Mobileye – a company which developes advaned driving assistance systems, went public. The success of the IPO – the third largest this year – is seen by many as a validation of Ford and VW’s decision to shut down Argo.
The impression is that advanced driver assitance systems, not AV tech, is the real future (at least in terms of revenue and profits).
In an interview with Mobileye CEO and founder, Amnon shashua, he mentioned that: “Things have changed and became more and more nuanced. You know, five years ago we’d be talking about driving assist and then robotaxis as kind of two separate domains. We gradually built a product portfolio that bridges the spectrum between driving assist and robotaxis.”
It’s interesting to see what Mobileye will come up with, and how she will change the AV market.