Self-driving tech firm Aurora mulls sale to Apple or Microsoft – Bloomberg News

A Peterbilt 579 truck outfitted with Aurora’s self-driving system is seen on the firm’s terminal in Palmer, south of Dallas, Texas, U.S. September 23, 2021. Image taken September 23, 2021. REUTERS/Tina Bellon

Sept 2 (Reuters) – Aurora Innovation Inc (AUR.O) Chief Government Chris Urmson not too long ago outlined a number of choices for the self-driving tech agency to fight difficult market situations, together with a potential sale to Apple Inc (AAPL.O) or Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), Bloomberg Information reported on Friday.

Many electric-vehicle and self-driving startups that had raised money simply by way of IPOs and mergers with blank-check companies throughout the market growth at the moment are scrambling to launch autos and burning money quickly amid a bleak financial system and supply-chain snarls.

Reuters reported in 2020 that Apple was transferring ahead with its self-driving automobile know-how and was concentrating on 2024 to supply a passenger automobile that would embrace its personal breakthrough battery know-how.

Microsoft, however, has invested in San Francisco-based self-driving automobile maker Cruise, which is valued at $30 billion and counts Basic Motors Co (GM.N) as a majority stakeholder.

Urmson, who co-founded Aurora after working Google proprietor Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) self-driving automobile undertaking, additionally floated measures together with value cuts, taking the corporate personal and spinning off or promoting property, the report mentioned, citing an inside memo. (https://bloom.bg/3ReFDgP)

Aurora declined to remark.

Shares of the corporate closed 15% greater on Friday, however have misplaced practically 80% this 12 months, in an indication of its struggles since going public late final 12 months with a blank-check agency. It has a market cap of about $2.4 billion.

Final month, Aurora mentioned it will delay the supply of its scalable autonomous freight vehicles by a 12 months to the primary half of 2024, citing provide constraints.

Different choices Urmson steered within the memo had been to purchase firms within the sector with $150 million to $300 million of money, and to freeze hiring and lay off staff, the Bloomberg report mentioned.

Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Enhancing by Devika Syamnath

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