The factory in Dresden, Germany, will start producing chips needed for autonomous vehicles, smart homes and internet-linked city infrastructure in 2021, the world’s biggest car-parts supplier said Monday in a statement. It’ll employ as many as 700 workers once construction is complete in 2019. “Expanding our production capacity will help us boost our competitive position,” Chief Executive Officer Volkmar Denner said in the statement, noting that the use of semiconductors is growing as “connectivity and automation rise.”

Bosch, known as a maker of traditional car parts such as braking systems and combustion engines, is also a long-time software developer and is increasingly investing in newer technologies as the nature of driving changes.