Intel intends to buy a Silicon Valley vision processing business which has a design centre in Ireland.
Movidius contributes technology to the manufacturers of virtual reality headsets, drones and Internet of Things devices, and is working with artificial intelligence.
Among its customers are Google – which is itself heavily invested in AI聽–聽and electronics company Lenovo.
鈥淢ovidius鈥� mission is to give the power of sight to machines. As part of Intel, we鈥檒l remain focused on this mission, but with the technology and resources to innovate faster and execute at scale,鈥� said Movidius CEO Remi El-Ouazzane.
鈥淢ovidius has been attacking this challenge at the device level 鈥� combining advanced algorithms with dedicated low-power hardware.
鈥淎t Intel, we鈥檒l be part of a team that is attacking this challenge from the cloud, through the network and on the device.鈥�
The firm envisages the development of autonomous machines that can see in 3D, understand their surroundings and navigate accordingly.
El-Ouazzane added: 鈥淚n the years ahead, we鈥檒l see new types of autonomous machines with more advanced capabilities as we make progress on one of the most difficult challenges of AI: getting our devices not just to see, but also to think.鈥�
Some analysts expect there to be 50 billion connected devices in the world by 2020.
Intel senior vice president Josh Walden, who serves as general manager of Intel鈥檚 New Technology Group, said: 鈥淲e鈥檙e entering an era where devices must be smart and connected.
鈥淲hen a device is capable of understanding and responding to its environment, entirely new and unprecedented solutions present themselves.
鈥淲ith Movidius, Intel gains low-power, high-performance platforms for accelerating computer vision applications.
鈥淎dditionally, this acquisition brings algorithms tuned for deep learning, depth processing, navigation and mapping, and natural interactions, as well as broad expertise in embedded computer vision and machine intelligence.鈥�
Movidius, which said last year it planned to create an additional 100 jobs in Ireland after securing an additional 拢27 million in funding, also has a design centre in Romania.