Conti puts its chips on AI start-up

Hanover, Germany – Continental has acquired a minority stake in Recogni, a German-US start-up working on a new chip architecture for AI-based object-recognition in real time. The San Jose, California-based tech firm's chips are intended for use in Continental's vehicle computers, for example to perform rapid processing of sensor data for automated and autonomous driving. As an investor – percentage stake not disclosed – the Hanover-based group is contributing financial support and expertise in the field of AI, vehicle sensors and advanced driver assistance systems to Recogn's chip design work. Continental said volume production featuring the new chip application could begin as early as 2026: the new processors serving as "ultra-economical data boosters: with minimal energy consumption." The development, it added, will enable vehicle computers to gain a rapid sense of the vehicle's immediate surroundings, thus creating the basis for automated and autonomous driving.