Ford buys software startup Livio

Ford Motor Company has made its first technology acquisition in thirteen years, with the purchase of startup company Livio, in a bid to accelerate its efforts to help drivers safely access content on their smartphone while on the road. Livio, which is based in the Detroit suburb of Ferndale, Michigan, develops software that enables drivers connect to their smartphones through their car radios or dashboard infotainment systems.
October 4, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
278 Ford Motor Company has made its first technology acquisition in thirteen years, with the purchase of startup company Livio, in a bid to accelerate its efforts to help drivers safely access content on their smartphone while on the road.

Livio, which is based in the Detroit suburb of Ferndale, Michigan, develops software that enables drivers connect to their smartphones through their car radios or dashboard infotainment systems.

Ford paid less than US$10 million for the eleven-person startup, said Paul Mascarenas, Ford's chief technical officer. Though owned by Ford, Livio will continue supplying its current customers, including 948 General Motors.

Mascarenas said Livio complements Ford's efforts to allow drivers to safely access phone apps from their cars. Ford's AppLink system, which lets drivers access their apps through voice recognition, will be inside an estimated 7 million vehicles by 2015, Mascarenas said.

Livio was founded five years ago by Jake Sigal, who said joining Ford will help his company's efforts to promote a single standard for in-vehicle connectivity. Car companies are now using a variety of systems, which makes it harder for app developers to bring apps to market quickly. Ford has also promoted the development of a single standard.

"This helps us accelerate the industry standard, which is desperately needed," Sigal said. "It's a lot easier pushing a standard when you're not just a startup in metro Detroit."
Location Based Systems

Related Content

  • June 6, 2012
    Nokia announcement is game changer for global navigation industry
    Nokia has announced plans to release a new version of Ovi Maps for its smartphones that includes high-end walk and drive navigation at no extra cost, available for download at www.nokia.com/maps. This move has the potential to nearly double the size of the current mobile navigation market.The new version of Ovi Maps includes high-end car and pedestrian navigation features, such as turn-by-turn voice guidance for 74 countries, in 46 languages, and traffic information for more than 10 countries, as well as de
    Read More
  • September 8, 2015
    Over-the-air software updates to benefit for automotive market, IHS says
    While quite common in smartphones and personal computers, remote over-the-air (OTA) software updates are still only in their infancy in the automotive space, according to a new report from IHS Automotive. The report finds that OTA software updates will eventually be a big benefit for the automotive industry due to their capacity to reduce warranty costs, potentially increase overall completion rates for software-related recalls, improve customer satisfaction by eliminating trips to the dealership for so
    Read More
  • February 1, 2012
    Advanced in-vehicle user interface - future developments
    Dave McNamara and Craig Simonds, Autotechinsider LLC, look at human-machine interface development out to 2015. The US auto industry is going through the worst crisis it has faced since the Great Depression. But it has embraced technologies that will produce the best-possible driving experience for the public. Ford was the first OEM to announce in-car internet radio and SYNC, its signature-branded User Interface (UI), is held up as the shining example of change embracement.
    Read More
  • April 18, 2012
    Ford and Toyota announce hybrid and telematics collaboration
    Ford Motor Company and Toyota Motor Corporation have announced they will equally collaborate on the development of an advanced new hybrid system for light truck and SUV customers. The two companies also agreed to work together on enablers to complement each company's existing telematics platform standards, helping bring more Internet-based services and useful information to consumers globally.
    Read More

Highlighted Content