Canada's Magna joins BMW-Intel self-driving car project

(Reuters) - Canadian auto parts producer Magna International Inc said on Tuesday it had joined a consortium including BMW and Intel Corp to develop a self-driving vehicle platform for the use of auto makers by 2020.

The move comes as automakers are increasingly seeking alliances to share the high costs of developing self-driving vehicle technology, which requires extensive research and development and software expertise outside the traditional domain of carmakers.

Magna is the latest addition to the BMW-Intel alliance, which aims to develop new technology that could put self-driving cars on the road by around 2021. (http://reut.rs/2y9llha)

The consortium also includes Mobileye, Fiat Chrysler and auto suppliers Delphi Automotive and Continental AG.

Earlier this year, Intel bought Mobileye, the world's largest supplier of systems used in automotive collision detection systems, for $15 billion.

Magna will also help automakers industrialize the platform designed by the consortium, the Canadian company in a statement.

(Reporting by Munsif Vengattil and Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; editing by Patrick Graham and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)