Xerox Corp. has announced the sale of its Xerox Research Centre Europe (XRCE) in Grenoble, France, to Naver Corp., a South Korean Internet company that operates the NAVER search portal.
The XRCE was founded in 1993 and focused on research involving artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, natural language processing and ethnography. The French Works Council”™s consultation on this transaction has been completed and the agreement is expected to close in the third quarter. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
“Xerox is a company built on innovating the way the world works and we maintain a commitment to innovation in a wide variety of technical areas including both the future of print and the future of work,” said Steve Hoover, chief technology officer for the Norwalk-headquartered Xerox. “The majority of research taking place at XRCE was supporting Xerox”™s business process outsourcing unit, now an independent company and no longer aligns with Xerox strategy. This transaction will allow us to better optimize our R&D investment, focusing in areas more aligned to our business.”
