Tesla in talks to buy Israeli AI startup?

The company specializes in unsupervised machine learning and holds over 200 patents.

Tesla is reportedly in talks with an Israeli startup developing artificial intelligence technology.

As Tesla CEO Elon Musk posts videos of flaming absinthe towers in a Jerusalem speakeasy, Israeli news outlet Globes claims the executive is in the country to discuss a potential collaboration or acquisition with Tel Aviv-based Cortica.

Founded little more than a decade ago, the startup has filed hundreds of patents related to unsupervised machine learning. Such technology is particularly important for self-driving cars, theoretically allowing vehicles to effectively respond to unique scenarios that cannot be predicted.

Cortica says its AI platform can identify everything from pedestrians to hoverboards and baby strollers. Object recognition is combined with predictive AI to assign a probability of each object's next possible course of action. The company has also developed advanced technologies for sensor fusion, localization and handling of big data.

Volkswagen Group is reportedly among several automakers planning to use Cortica's technology for autonomous cars.

Learning how to pour flaming absinthe over a tower of glasses in a Jerusalem speakeasy.… https://t.co/kLFzl7SjH5

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 19, 2018