Report: Sony joins self-driving car chase

Mike Snider | USA TODAY

Sony is another apparent entry in the race to create the high-tech car of the future.

The electronics giant is teaming up with Japanese robotics company ZMP to develop self-driving automobiles, according to a report in the Financial Times.

Sony, which invested 100 million yen (about $842,000) in ZMP, joins a wave of tech titans to join the accelerating auto-tech competition.

Apple has its own self-driving vehicle project in the works, according to several reports last week. Meanwhile, Google has been developing its own autonomous vehicles for years.

Sony's strength in image sensors, used in digital cameras, could translate to self-driving vehicles. That's because the autonomous autos could need as many as 10 cameras to monitor vehicle surroundings.

By the time self-driving cars begin to be deployed, as early as 2020, Sony has "to be No. 1 in automotive sensors," Shigeo Ohba, the general manager of Sony's image sensor business said in an interview.

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