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.
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