Mobileye, an Intel subsidiary, announced at CES in Las Vegas the acquisition of Mentee Robotics for $900 million to advance into robotics under its Mobileye 3.0 phase, led by co-founder Amnon Shashua who co-founded the target in 2022.
Mobileye established its position in the market by supplying automakers with millions of computer-vision chips. These chips support automotive safety features and advanced driver assistance systems, known as ADAS. The company, which is publicly traded, later extended its offerings to autonomous driving through specialized chips and software. Amnon Shashua, serving as co-founder and president, now directs the company toward Mobileye 3.0, with a primary focus on robotics.
The agreement specifies that Mobileye will purchase Mentee Robotics for approximately $612 million in cash along with up to 26.2 million shares of Mobileye common stock. Shashua, who holds positions as chairman, co-founder, and significant shareholder of Mentee Robotics, recused himself from the Mobileye board’s consideration and approval process. The transaction received approval from Mobileye’s board and from Intel, Mobileye’s largest shareholder. The deal is set to close during the first quarter of the year. This acquisition is projected to result in a modest increase to Mobileye’s operating expenses in 2026, specifically by a low-single-digit percentage.
Shashua commented on the development during the announcement. “Today marks a new chapter for robotics and automotive AI, and the beginning of Mobileye 3.0,” Shashua said Tuesday. “By combining Mentee’s breakthroughs in humanoid robotics with Mobileye’s expertise in automotive autonomy, and its proven ability to productize advanced AI, we have a unique opportunity to lead the evolution of physical AI across robotics and autonomous vehicles on a global scale.”
Mentee Robotics, which specializes in developing humanoid robots, will operate as an independent unit within Mobileye. The acquisition extends Mobileye’s business scope toward Physical Artificial Intelligence. This involves systems designed to understand context and intent, as well as to interact naturally with humans and the physical world. Mobileye intends to adapt its vehicle-navigation technology, originally developed for automotive applications, to humanoid robots.
Mobileye supports this expansion with a substantial automotive revenue pipeline. This pipeline, driven by advanced vehicle autonomy and core ADAS technologies, totals $24.5 billion over the next eight years. The figure represents an increase of more than 40 percent compared to the pipeline value reported in January 2023. Mentee Robotics will access Mobileye’s resources, including advanced AI training infrastructure and compute capabilities, to support its development efforts.
The acquisition announcement occurred one day after Mobileye secured a significant customer order. On Monday, a top-10 automaker agreed to purchase 9 million units of Mobileye’s EyeQ6H-based Surround ADAS systems. These systems are built for next-generation, hands-off advanced driver assistance. In March, Volkswagen Group confirmed its adoption of the EyeQ6H chip. Mobileye now projects delivery of more than 19 million EyeQ6H-based Surround systems in the future.
