Intel in Talks to Buy Israel's Moovit Public Transit App for $1 Billion: Report

Chipmaker Intel is in advanced talks to acquire Israeli public transit app developer Moovit for $1 billion (roughly Rs. 7,500 crores), financial news website Calcalist reported on Sunday. Moovit has raised $133 million (roughly Rs. 1,007 crores) from investors including Intel, BMW iVentures and Sequoia Capital. Officials at Intel Israel and Moovit declined to comment on the report.

Calcalist reported that people with knowledge of the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the deal is very close to being signed.

Moovit's free mobile navigation app provides transit information to more than 75 crore users in 100 countries.

Last month it launched an emergency mobilisation service, which was created for transit agencies and enterprises during the COVID-19 pandemic. The technology transforms vehicle fleets into an on-demand service to get essential employees safely to work and has been implemented in a number of cities by large corporations.

Intel has made significant investments already in Israel, having acquired autonomous vehicle technology provider Mobileye for $15.3 billion (roughly Rs. 1.15 lakh crores) in 2017. In December it bought Israeli artificial intelligence firm Habana Labs for $2 billion (roughly Rs. 15,100 crores).

© Thomson Reuters 2020