Wind River charts IoT course after Intel split

TPG Capital announced plans to position Wind River as a leader in Industrial IoT software after completing an acquisition of the company from Intel.

Mobile World Live reports that the deal, announced in April  and completed 26 June, will provide Wind River with “the additional resources and focus needed” to differentiate itself as a “market-leading provider of software”, TPG Capital’s head of technology and investing Nehal Raj said in a statement.

Raj was announced as chairman of Wind River’s board, while existing president Jim Douglas adds the role of CEO to his remit.

Douglas told Mobile World Live the acquisition allows Wind River to refocus on its core competencies, having taken on a number of projects outside its traditional purview as part of Intel.

He pointed to three areas of strategic focus for the future: the upgrade of ageing systems and critical infrastructure; the industry-wide shift to software; and the evolution from automation to autonomy.

While Wind River sees opportunity across a wide range of verticals including telecom networks; aerospace and defence; industrial; medical; and transportation, Douglas said the automotive industry is a perfect example of an area where the company can apply its expertise to achieve growth.

As automakers look to develop and scale connected car systems, Douglas said Wind River can take lessons learned from its work on airborne systems to help build safety and security into software for autonomous vehicles. The same experience could be used to help automakers consolidate increasingly complex computing systems inside connected vehicles, which he said could radically change the economics of the cars by reducing power consumption and vehicle weight.

The CEO said Wind River will also take part in the push to drive more intelligence to the network edge to fuel critical systems and enhanced automation.

“IoT infrastructure is the first check box you’ve got to add to that place for the connectivity model so you can monitor and manage and optimise these systems. The next phase is you drive a lot more compute and intelligence to the edge, and these systems start to morph from just doing tasks to allowing you to really start to tune outcomes.”

Though Wind River will be focused on achieving organic growth, Douglas said being part of TPG Capital will also allow it to explore opportunities to expand through mergers and acquisitions.

He noted the company has its eye out for deals which will complement its roadmap, adding each target would have to offer at least two points of leverage, generally including a strong go-to-market strategy and a technology boost.