Renault-Nissan Alliance to buy French software development company Sylpheo

Franco-Japanese strategic partnership Renault-Nissan Alliance today struck a deal to buy French software developer Sylpheo as part of its plan to accelerate the expansion of its connected vehicle and mobility services.

The car makers did not disclose financial terms of the deal.

''The Sylpheo team of software developers and cloud engineers joining the Alliance will have a unique opportunity to work on our next generation of connected cars and other advanced technologies,'' said Ogi Redzic, Alliance senior vice president of connected vehicles and mobility service.

''They will be playing a critical role in this new era of tremendous change for the global auto industry,'' he added.

Renault-Nissan Alliance said that they will launch more than 10 vehicles with autonomous drive technology by 2020.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance is a strategic partnership between Paris-based Renault and Yokohama, Japan-based Nissan, which together sell one in 10 cars worldwide.

The companies, which have been strategic partners since 1999, sold 8.5 million cars in nearly 200 countries in 2015.

The Alliance also operates strategic collaborations with other automakers, including Germany's Daimler, China's Dongfeng, and Japan's Mitsubishi Motors. The Alliance has a majority stake in the joint venture that owns Russia's top automaker, AvtoVaz.

This acquisition is the Alliance's latest step toward accelerating that development. Following Redzic's appointment in January to lead the mobility and connectivity services team, the world's fourth largest car group launched a recruitment campaign to hire 300 technology experts.

Redzic said that Sylpheo's team of 40 engineers and consultants will bring software development and cloud engineering expertise to the Alliance and had launched a recruitment campaign to hire 300 technology experts in the field.

''The acquisition of Sylpheo is just one of many steps Renault-Nissan Alliance is taking to ensure its continued innovation leadership in the automotive industry,'' Redzic added.