Bosch to invest €100 million in AI tech campus

Bosch will back its drive into the world of AI tech with a €100 million investment in a new campus to be based in Tübingen, Germany.

Increasingly connecting its devices, vehicles and users in ever-smarter ways. It is expected that the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas will see numerous launches showing off fresh capability, including smart glasses that can connect to an electric bike, offering up data ranging speed to battery power direct to eye.

The proposed new build will host around 700 AI experts a space for “creative and productive exchange,” said the firm in a statement.

“These experts come from Bosch, external startups, and public research institutions. The new campus should strengthen exchange among experts in Cyber Valley. “Building trust together” will be a living reality there. Bosch is a founding member of Cyber Valley, which was established in 2016. This joint research venture brings together partners from industry, academia, and government to drive forward AI research and quickly transfer research findings into real-world industrial applications,” said Bosch.

The new research complex is expected to go live from 2022.

Furthermore, Bosch says that it will establish a training programme capable of training 20,000 associates in AI tech in the next two years. The Bosch Center for Artificial Intelligence already operates sites at seven locations worldwide, including two in the USA. This project already employs around 250 AI specialists dedicated to over 150 projects, ranging mobility to agriculture.

As an ongoing spend, it is said that Bosch as a whole commits €3.7 billion annually to software development.

By the time CES rolls around we are told to expect technology that will feature on the International Space Station, a ‘Virtual Visor’ for cars and smart diagnosis platforms for the medical world.

“The solutions we’re showcasing at CES make it clear that Bosch aims to become an innovation leader in AI as well,” says Bosch management board member Michael Bolle. “As of 2025, every Bosch product will either contain artificial intelligence or will have been developed or manufactured with the help of AI.”

The global market volume for AI applications is expected to be around 120 billion dollars over that same period, a twelve-fold increase compared to 2018.