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The story
Founded by Amnon Shashua on Nov 18, 1998.1
Mobileye was founded on May 13, 1999 by Hebrew University professor Amnon Shashua. He evolved his academic research into a vision system that could detect vehicles using a camera and software. It developed into a supplier of automotive safety technologies based on adding "intelligence" to inexpensive cameras for commercialization.
Mobileye established its first research center in 2004. It launched the first generation EyeQ1 processor in 2008. The technology offered driver assistance including automatic emergency braking. One of the first vehicles to use this technology was the fifth-generation BMW 7 Series. Versions of the chip were released in 2010, 2014 and 2018.
In 2013, Mobileye announced the sale of a 25% stake to investors for $400 million, valuing the company at approximately $1.5 billion.
Mobileye went public on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014. It raised $890 million, and became the largest Israeli IPO in U.S. history. By the end of the year, Mobileye's technology had been implemented in 160 car models made by 18 different OEMs.
In 2017, Mobileye unveiled a mathematical model for safe self-driving cars based on research by CEO Amnon Shashua and VP of Technology Shai Shalev-Shwartz. Their study outlined a system called Responsibility-Sensitive Safety (RSS) which redefines fault and caution and could potentially be used to inform insurers and driving laws. Shalev-Shwartz was promoted to CTO in 2019.
In March 2017, Intel announced that it would acquire Mobileye for $15.3 billion — the biggest-ever acquisition of an Israeli tech company at the time. Following the acquisition, Reuters reported that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had charged two Israelis, Ariel Darvasi and Amir Waldman, with insider trading prior to the announcement. Both had connections to Mobileye through the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where Mobileye's technology was first developed. The public university's (Hebrew University of Jerusalem) scientific community produced at least 11 Mobileye directors and officers The SEC obtained an emergency court order, freezing certain assets of Virginia residents Lawrence F. Cluff, Jr. and Roger E. Shaoul, who allegedly used insider information to make approximately $1 million on the announcement. The SEC's amended complaint alleges that James Shaoul has professional and personal relationships with Mobileye founders. Shaoul allegedly tipped his brother Roger E. Shaoul with nonpublic information. Roger Shaoul allegedly then tipped Lawrence F. Cluff Jr. with nonpublic information about the tender offer, saying his family knew Mobileye's founders and they were recommending that friends and family invest in the company. All of the suspicious trading allegedly occurred in two accounts held in Cluff's name, including an account that had been dormant since 2011 before Cluff purchased Mobileye stock on Jan. 30, 2017. According to the SEC's amended complaint, James Shaoul resides in Israel where Mobileye's principal offices are located. Shaoul is a physician specializing in nonsurgical cosmetic procedures, including botox and laser hair removal. A Mobileye director and his wife have received treatment at Shaoul's clinic. Neither Intel nor Mobileye were accused by the SEC of violating the law.
In October 2018, Mobileye and Volkswagen released plans to commercialize Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) in Israel. Mobileye instead began "robotaxi" trials with Nio electric vehicles in Israel in May 2020 due to Volkswagen delays, and unveiled its robotaxi in 2021 at the IAA Mobility show in Munich.
Mobileye demonstrated an autonomous car equipped only with cameras in Jerusalem in January 2020. It later tested the cars in Munich and New York City.
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In December 2021, Intel announced its plan to take Mobileye public via in 2022, while maintaining its majority ownership, this time on Nasdaq. In October 2022, Intel offered 5–6% of outstanding shares, raising $861 million on 41 million shares. This valued Mobileye at around $17 billion – more than what Intel had paid in 2017. Intel continued to hold all Class B shares, giving itself an overall 99.4% of voting power.
In January 2026, it was announced Mobileye had agreed to acquire Mentee Robotics (a company co-founded by Amnon Shashua in 2022) for approximately $900 million, subject to customary closing conditions. The acquisition was intended to expand Mobileye’s activities in physical artificial intelligence, with Mentee Robotics continuing to operate as an independent unit following completion, which was expected in the first quarter of 2026.
From Wikipedia’s article on Mobileye, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5