BERLIN: German automotive suppliers Continental and Bosch are to buy stakes of 5 per cent each in digital mapping firm HERE to gain more expertise in driver-assistance and other data-based technologies.

Germany’s three leading premium automakers BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen’s Audi bought HERE for 2.8 billion euros ($3.4 billion) in 2015 from Finnish telecoms group Nokia to expand investments in autonomous-driving technology.

The three car companies are spending billions of euros on developing electric cars and software-based mobility services as tougher emission rules and connectivity are transforming the auto industry.

Continental said on Thursday it would sign a collaboration agreement with the Dutch provider of high-definition maps to pave the way for technologies that provide data for the efficient transportation of people and goods.

Software and electronics products are biggest drivers of growth at Hanover-based Continental which also makes fuel-injection systems and vehicle tyres. It plans to boost total sales to more than 50 billion euros by 2020 from 40.5 billion in 2016. Bosch’s statement on Thursday referred to plans by HERE to increase its diversification into non-automotive applications - a move that could help to offset risks surrounding the eventual arrival of fully autonomous cars for the mass market.

“Bosch is more than cars,” Chief Executive Volkmar Denner said in the statement.

He said the company saw synergies with data-based services for smart homes and smart cities - terms broadly describing the use of technology to find efficiencies everywhere from the factory floor to road traffic management.

Reuters