The Renault-Nissan Alliance has announced the opening of a new research office at Mountain View, California. The new facility lies at the heart of Silicon Valley, directly across the Google campus and near some of the world’s leading software and hardware companies.

The location will allow the RenaultNissan Alliance, which already employs more than 350,000 workers and accounts for 1 in 10 new cars sold globally in 2010, to benefit from the regional engineering talent in shaping the cars of the future.

“The Alliance is at the vanguard of the auto industry’s shift to sustainable transportation. Having a greater footprint in one of the world’s headquarters for clean tech research will extend our lead further,” said Carlos Ghosn, CEO of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, during his talk at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR) on the 14th of June.

The Alliance has invested $5.4 billion in zero-emission cars and has already delivered more than 7,500 examples of the world’s first pure electric, mass-marketed car, the Nissan LEAF.

It is also planning to launch a new electric Infiniti premium sedan, the two-seat urban commuter Renault Twizy, and commercial vans, all of which can also be charged with renewable energy.

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