Ford Buys Software Developer for Military Robots

Ford Motor Co. has acquired Quantum Signal AI, a developer of software for robots used in military applications, to help launch robo-taxis and autonomous delivery vehicles by 2021.

Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Saline, Mich.-based Quantum will support Ford’s advanced mobility efforts, including the carmaker’s Argo AI and SAIPS units, but will operate independently by its own management.

CEO Mitchell Rohde will continue to lead the 40-member team that works out of a former high school building.

Founded in 1999, Quantum’s software allows the U.S. military to remotely control robotic vehicles from thousands of miles away, including autonomous sentries in Alaska. The company also has designed simulation systems and integrates sensors and perception software systems.

The military has used Quantum’s Anvel simulation software to evaluate the performance of autonomous systems in harsh and unpredictable conditions. The latter includes encounters with wildlife and gunfire from snipers. 

As part of Ford, Quantum will discontinue its defense work. Instead, the company will focus on technologies to help the carmaker meet its goal of launching a fully autonomous vehicle.

Ford says Quantum’s technology will help enable autonomous vehicles to operate in complex situations. Among them: navigating around obstacles at loading docks and delivering packages to a customer’s home.