> I am not talking about investing in companies. I am talking about how these companies invest their R&D capital in projects.

Some food for thought:

These companies do have economies of scale on their side for internal tech investments. Things like this are a cheaper bet for them than for anyone else. Investments that seem irrational in a vacuum (aka for anybody else) can be rational for these specialized parties.

They already have hardware specialists, contacts / relationships, software expertise, idle bodies, etc.