Intel's new Silicon Valley Autonomous Driving Garage is primed for partnerships

Intel just launched a new Autonomous Driving Garage facility in San Jose, at a facility that used to house Altera, the company it acquired in 2015. The autonomous tech development facility is actually one of four garages Intel maintains globally, including one in Arizona, one in Portland and one in Berlin. The Silicon Valley location, however, makes sure its biggest partners in the emerging space are close at hand. The facility officially opened at a press event on Wednesday that included a ribbon cutting ceremony, talks by Intel subject matter experts on various aspects of its self-driving program and a number of demonstrations of different parts of its business, including a ride in partner Delphi's self-driving Audi SUV, a look at BMW's latest advanced autonomous capability testing vehicle (the first in the U.S. and among the first of the fleet of 40 it's committed to producing) and a look at the company's efforts to spearhead development of fast, secure wireless infrastructure. Intel's Garage includes a literal garage -- the spacious facility was large enough to house four vehicles with plenty of room left over for media, analysts and a strong cadre of Intel staff.