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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

+os

BlackBerry's QNX [wikipedia.org] operating system will power some of Ford's new vehicles [reuters.com]:

BlackBerry Ltd has signed a deal to work directly with Ford Motor Co to expand the carmaker's use of its QNX secure operating system, the Canadian technology company said on Monday, as Ford develops increasingly automated vehicles.

The deal with Ford is the first BlackBerry has done directly with a major automaker, though it currently sells its technology to auto industry suppliers. The company is betting its future on expanding sales of software products, including to automakers and other manufacturers, after largely ceding the smartphone market to rivals including Apple Inc, Alphabet's Google and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.

Panasonic Automotive currently uses QNX software in the Sync 3 infotainment console that it supplies to Ford. BlackBerry is hoping the new deal will expand use of BlackBerry's software in Ford vehicles as the two companies identify other systems where it might be used. "We can form the basis of the entire vehicle all the way from autonomous drive through to infotainment," John Wall, the head of BlackBerry's QNX unit, said in a phone interview.

Also at WSJ [wsj.com] and USA Today [usatoday.com].

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