In addition to the undisclosed investment, Boeing said the two companies will also explore products and applications for emerging markets such as urban mobility.

It was the first investment in autonomous technologies by Boeing’s venture capital arm, Boeing HorizonX, since it was established in April of this year, Boeing said.

Near Earth Autonomy, a spin-off from the Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute, develops technologies including sensor suites, three dimensional mapping and survey, and collision detection and avoidance that enables aircraft to operate autonomously.