Aptiv joins Audi in software investment

Aptiv takes another step into software expansion

DETROIT — Auto tech supplier Aptiv last week said it and Audi will invest $285 million in the Austrian vehicle software company TTTech Auto.

It's the latest move by Aptiv to boost its automotive software offerings as its automaker customers rethink vehicles to be more advanced and connected.

Aptiv will invest $228 million in TTTech Auto, with Audi investing $57 million, the companies said in a statement.

TTTech Auto designs software that automakers can use to manage data flowing from sensors and safety systems needed to automate driving.

"TTTech Auto's expertise in providing end-to-end real time behavior for safety-critical systems complements our software platform to accelerate development, integration, testing and validation," Aptiv CEO Kevin Clark said in a statement.

"This investment further advances our software strategy and adds to Aptiv's full-stack capabilities, enabling customers to democratize advanced safety systems faster and at a lower cost."

The investment comes within weeks of Aptiv saying it will buy software firm Wind River for $4.3 billion in cash from private equity firm TPG Capital. That move will give the supplier access to Wind River's Studio cloud-native software platform and to more than 1,000 technical employees.

Just days later, Aptiv followed the Wind River announcement by hiring former Microsoft executive Sophia Velastegui as its chief product officer. She will be based in Boston, where she will work closely with the Wind River team, Aptiv said.

Aptiv is planning to boost its software offerings to automakers and other companies as the industry moves deeper into software development and tech giants such as Qualcomm Inc. and Intel Corp. establish larger presences in the automotive supply chain.

Aptiv also seeks to address concerns from its automaker customers about whether it can stay on the cutting edge.

Bloomberg, citing six people familiar with the thinking of automaker executives, reported in December that some companies were unhappy with Aptiv's automated-driving software.

Aptiv and Audi's investment in TTTech Auto will allow the software firm to expand its product portfolio and expand internationally, the companies said in a statement.

"We want to provide aerospace safety at automotive cost," TTTech Auto CEO Georg Kopetz said in an interview with Reuters.

TTTech Auto was formed in 2018 by aerospace firm TTTech Group, South Korean technology company Samsung, Audi and chipmaker Infineon.

Aptiv ranks No. 19 on the Automotive News list of the top 100 global suppliers, with worldwide sales to automakers of $11.5 billion in 2020.