Micron Partners BMW to Expand in Autonomous Vehicle Market
Micron Technology’s MU recently announced that it has entered into partnership with BMW Group to enhance automotive memory solutions for self-driven cars.
The solutions, created using a combination of Micron’s memory and storage technologies and BMW’s Test Automation Framework, will be tried and tested in the former’s lab in Munich, Germany.
Taking about the partnership, Micron’s vice president of automotive division, Giorgio Scuro, was quoted saying, “Micron has a long-standing record working with automotive industry partners, and this joint initiative with the BMW Group is a testament to our expertise in bringing innovative automotive memory technologies to market.”
Micron to Benefit
Memory and storage are key components of next-generation systems in autonomous vehicles, including advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) technology. Micron offers memory products including DRAM, NAND, LPDDR and SSD, all of which are important to build a memory-hungry autonomous vehicle.
Per MarketsandMarkets, the ADAS market is projected to reach $91.83 billion by 2025, reflecting a CAGR of 20.96% between 2018 and 2025.
It seems Micron is strategically placing itself to cash in on this opportunity. Its advanced data storage technology will help accelerate the race toward driverless car technology.
Self-Driving Exposure
The company’s vehicle-focused semiconductor technology currently helps mitigate human driving errors like gesture control interfaces that help detect distracted drivers. Its artificial intelligence (AI) also helps cars detect the presence of objects and humans on the road and alert the driver.
Moreover, Micron’s vehicle-to-vehicle communication technology allows connected cars to communicate any information among themselves, for instance a blockage on the road, and helps them assess the situation and proactively slow down to avoid accidents.
The company already provides automotive-grade low-power DDR memories to automotive companies. Micron believes that this will enable overall system bandwidths of up to 100 gigabytes per second. However, the company estimates that bandwidths of 300 GB/s will be required to power Level 5 autonomous vehicles, making it all the more important to make advancements in its already powerful memory solutions.
Efforts in AI and Memory Solutions
Apart from autonomous vehicles, Micron’s zeal to remain at the top of the game in booming markets like AI and machine learning and memory solutions is commendable.
Recently, the company signed a three-year deal with CERN openlab, under which it will provide CERN with advanced next-generation memory solutions to boost machine learning capabilities for sophisticated physics experiments conducted at laboratories.
Moreover, Micron’s long-standing partnership with Intel INTC to develop new memory technologies is long documented. This collaboration yielded the densest 3D NAND technology. Recently, the companies expanded their long-standing relationship, which resulted in the development of non-volatile memory that is must faster and more reliable/endurable than NAND.
The company's continued efforts were reflected in the impressive 38% year-over-year increase in revenues in its last reported quarter.
Micron Technology, Inc. Revenue (TTM)
Micron Technology, Inc. Revenue (TTM) | Micron Technology, Inc. Quote
Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider
Micron currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
A couple of top-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector are Stratasys, Ltd. SSYS and CACI International, Inc. CACI, both sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Long-term earnings growth for Stratasys and CACI is projected to be 15.75% and 10%, respectively.
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