Mercedes-Benz has launched a new company, Athos Silicon, to accelerate the development of next-generation chips for self-driving cars, drones and other vehicles. The spinout, announced on Friday, establishes Athos Silicon in Santa Clara, California, as a hub for a team of engineers who have spent the past five years at Mercedes-Benz Research & Development North America creating energy-efficient computing brains for autonomous vehicles.
As part of the deal, Athos will receive intellectual property from Mercedes-Benz along with what the automaker described as a “significant” investment, though financial details were not disclosed. The team’s breakthrough involves using “chiplets,” small pieces of chips bound together in a single package, to deliver the reliability required for critical self-driving functions without relying on multiple separate chips.
Athos Chief Executive Charnjiv Bangar explained that packaging the chiplets together reduces power consumption by 10 to 20 times compared to traditional designs, a key advantage for electric vehicles where computing systems compete with wheels for limited battery power. “For an electric future, electricity is a new currency,” Bangar said, underscoring the importance of power efficiency in the next generation of vehicles.
Bangar added that Athos Silicon plans to raise venture capital to support its growth while maintaining independence. Mercedes-Benz will retain a minority stake, but the new firm will operate with its own board to allow partnerships with other carmakers, including competitors of Mercedes-Benz