SAO PAULO - Intel plans to invest $152 million in Brazil over the next five years in research and development, the chip manufacturer said on Wednesday. In doing so, the company will partner with the Brazilian government, which has made increasing the country’s software output a top priority.
The direct investment will go toward increasing head count and resources internally but also funding research at at least seven Brazilian universities, Intel Brazil’s president, Fernando Martins, told Dealbook on Wednesday. Those in the initial group include Unicamp, the University of Sao Paulo, and the University of Brasilia.
The Brazilian government is expected to match Intel’s investment, Mr. Martins said. Last year, President Dilma Rousseff said her government would spend at least $254 million to stimulate software development. That figure is expected to grow and does not even include Brazil’s national development bank’s initiatives. Transitioning to an innovation-based economy is an important issue in this commodity-export dependent economy.
For Intel, Brazil is the company’s third largest market, Mr. Martins said. Additionally, its venture capital arm Intel Capital has also long been active here, making its first investment in 1999. Since, it has invested approximately $100 million in more than 25 companies, according to Dave Thomas, head of Intel Capital.
But the company is far from alone these days as other technology giants have also recently bet on Brazil’s capabilities as a software and software solutions provider. Microsoft last November said it would open a research center in Rio de Janeiro, investing $102 million over up to four years. Also last year Cisco said it plans to invest $508 million over four years.
