Chinese Autonomous Driving Startup WeRide Raises $200 Million From Yutong Group

The AI-powered Chinese mobility startup, WeRide, disclosed that it has successfully raised $200 million from Chinese legacy bus maker Yutong Group in its latest Series B1 funding round.

What Happened: WeRide focuses on the L4 autonomous technology, or High Driving Automation technology, that eliminates the need for human intervention even when faced with system failures. With Yutong Group’s backing, WeRide will focus on deploying its autonomous driving technology to city buses and minibuses while scaling up the driverless mobility on the commercial front.

70% of the 300 at the WeRide technology team are engaged as R&D engineers.

Alliance Ventures, the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance’s strategic venture capital arm, became WeRides’s strategic partners in 2018, as reported on the WeRide website.

Co-founder and CEO of WeRide, Tony Han, was quoted saying, “WeRide and Yutong Group will engage in extensive cooperation in multiple key domains, such as R&D, vehicle platforms and mobility services, and we will draw on each other’s strengths to create a brand-new urban mobility and transportation system.”

Why It Matters: The L4 autonomous driving company is already part of a joint venture with Baiyun Taxi and SCI (Guangzhou) Group. The JV WeRide Robotaxi provides daily commute services spanning 145 square kilometers across two districts of Guangzhou.

China’s first autonomous minibus, Robobus, is the outcome of the collaborated efforts of Yutong and WeRide. Additionally, WeRide was the first autonomous driving technology company in China to receive state approval for driverless testing, according to its statement in the latest notification.

Last month, Reuters reported that Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) is considering a $6.4 million investment to make its Supercharger V3 in China starting from 2021.

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Image Courtesy: WeRide