Indie Semiconductor, an Autotech solutions innovator, and Ficosa, a globally recognized company specializing in advanced vision, safety, and efficiency solutions for the automotive industry, have formalized a collaborative agreement aimed at the development and commercialization of cutting-edge automotive camera solutions incorporating neural network-based (NN) artificial intelligence (AI) processing. The strategic alliance capitalizes on Ficosa’s extensive expertise as a high-volume vision solution supplier and Indie’s field-proven, proprietary vision processing technology.
As a result of this collaboration, Indie Semiconductor’s stock exhibited notable market dynamics. Following the announcement, Indie Semiconductor’s stock opened Thursday’s trading at $6.92, a deviation from Wednesday’s closing figure of $7.35. Indie Semiconductor Inc is currently trading at $7.18, reflecting a decrease of $0.17 (2.38%) as of today, January 4th, at 11:05 am GMT-5.
The partnership’s primary objective is to harness Ficosa’s nearly decade-long experience in delivering high-volume vision solutions and combine it with Indie’s proven vision processing technology. This synergy aims to deliver groundbreaking imaging and in-camera object detection performance, particularly addressing the challenges posed by edge sensing applications. The collaborative efforts of the two companies are expected to yield the first smart camera solutions employing their combined technologies in 2024, with plans to escalate production to volume levels by 2025.
The automotive industry is currently witnessing a heightened focus on the protection of vulnerable road users (VRU), such as pedestrians and cyclists. Government regulators and safety assessment programs, including the US and Euro NCAP, are increasingly emphasizing the need for enhanced safety measures, particularly in back-up and eMirror scenarios. Euro NCAP has been implementing VRU safety test protocols since 2020, and in the United States, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) has proposed updates to NCAP in 2024, providing consumers with information about crashworthiness and pedestrian protection of new vehicles.
In response to these regulatory developments, automakers are seeking scalable camera-based Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) solutions that go beyond passive viewing capabilities to incorporate intelligent sensing for actively detecting pedestrians. S&P Global projects substantial growth in shipments of surround-view and park assist camera electronic control units (ECUs), with figures expected to rise from 134 million units in 2023 to an estimated 240 million units by 2033.
Abhay Rai, the Executive Vice President and General Manager of Indie’s Vision Business Unit, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating, “Indie is thrilled to partner with Ficosa, leveraging our next generation of Computer Vision solutions that integrate not only high-performance image signal processing but also the dedicated AI elements required for neural networks.”
The collaboration between Indie Semiconductor and Ficosa signifies a pivotal step forward in the automotive industry’s pursuit of advanced safety solutions, aligning with evolving regulatory standards and consumer demands for innovative ADAS technologies. The successful development and commercialization of their combined automotive camera solutions are poised to contribute significantly to the enhancement of road safety and the protection of vulnerable road users.
