Renault and Nissan buy French software firm Sylpheo to build mobility apps

Renault and Nissan Motors are buying French software firm Sylpheo to develop new services including ride-hailing and car sharing, reports Reuters.

The French and Japanese automakers said that the acquisition, under which they would absorb Sylpheo’s 40 engineers and consultants, would boost their software development and cloud engineering expertise.

“The Sylpheo team of software developers and cloud engineers joining the Alliance will have a unique opportunity to work on our next generation of connected cars and other advanced technologies,” said Ogi Redzic, Renault-Nissan’s senior vice president of Connected Vehicles and Mobility Services.

Car manufacturers from Toyota to GM have been investing in software firms and mobility start-ups to leverage themselves amidst the rising tide of autonomous driving, ride-sharing, and other connected services.

Citing a Renault spokesperson, Reuters says that acquisition was part of the alliance’s recruitment push to hire 300 technology experts to better compete in the fast-growing mobility services sector in which Sylpheo will develop the applications for the alliance’s connected car service platform.

The two companies plan to launch more than 10 vehicles with autonomous drive technology by 2020. Nissan is aiming to develop autonomous multiple-lane driving functions, including lane changes, by 2018, and functions for full urban driving, including intersection, turns, by 2020.