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Ford and VW backed Argo AI autonomous vehicle project is shutting down

Ford and Volkswagen will reportedly offer jobs to some of Argo AI's employees and absorb the company's parts.

Bill Lavoy

October 26, 2022 1:55 PM

Argo AI

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Autonomous vehicle startup, Argo AI, has announced that it will be shutting down only six years after being founded in 2016. The Company’s parts and some of its employees will reportedly make their way over to its two main backers, Ford and Volkswagen.

The news of Argo AI closing shop was first reported by TechCrunch. According to that report, the company held an all-hands meeting on Wednesday to inform employees that some of them would be offered positions at Ford and VW, Argo AI’s two main backers. Argo AI has more than 2,000 employees, all of whom will receive some sort of severance package, the details of which will depend on whether they are retained by either Ford or VW. Ford and VW will also absorb Argo AI’s parts.

In 2017, Argo AI received $1 billion in funding over five years from Ford and set out to create an automated driving system. The company was able to secure more than $2.6 billion in additional funding, primarily from Ford and VW. It appeared that things were going well, with Ford Fusion and Ford Escape Hybrids often seen testing on public roads in various U.S. cities. Unfortunately, Argo AI struggled to secure additional funding, and Ford opted to shift its resources from autonomous vehicle technology and towards advanced driver assistance systems.

Argo AI released the following statement:

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Bill Lavoy

Managing Editor

Bill, who is also known as Rumpo, is a lifelong gamer and Toronto Maple Leafs fan. He made his mark early in his career through guide writing and a deep understanding of editorial SEO. He enjoys putting in the work to create a great content, be it a wild feature or grinding out an in-depth collectible guide. Tweet him @RumpoPlays if you have a question or comment about one of his articles.