VC-backed Chinese driverless delivery start-up gets $28m

Existing investors Yunqi Partners and Glory Ventures re-upped. Yunqi led the first tranche of the Series A - worth RMB100 million - last year. It said in a statement that the latest tranche was initiated in the fourth quarter of 2019 and was closed in February. The new capital will support cash flow and accelerate the pace of expansion. Another funding round is planned later this year.

Founded in 2018, Neolix has manufactured and delivered 225 unmanned vehicles in the past two years. Its targets for 2020 include fulfilling 1,000 orders and achieving break-even. The company claims to have sold vehicles to the likes of Meituan-Dianping, JD.com and Alibaba Group.

Neolix initially focused on the last-mile delivery services with a view to replacing human couriers. However, the founder quickly realized that in the short-term autonomous vehicles cannot match existing transportation options in terms of cost and efficiency. It then pivoted to group meal delivery services.

While a motorcycle courier can typically deliver a dozen meals at a time, an unmanned vehicle has a simultaneous capacity of 50-100 meals. This led Neolix to three commercialization scenarios: group meal delivery, as a supplement to manual distribution; mobile retail using unmanned vehicles to sell hot beverages and fast food; and security solutions for local governments.

In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, Chinese authorities have encouraged contactless delivery, increasing opportunities for those operating in the space. For example, Neolix has dispatched 18 unmanned vehicles to Wuhan and other cities to assist with street sterilization and unmanned delivery.

Neolix claims to have established the world's first level-four autonomous vehicle manufacturing base in Changzhou, with an annual production capacity of 10,000 units. It has also expanded into the Middle East, deploying mobile retail vehicles in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Several deals autonomous driving deals have been announced in China so far this year. In the mainstream commercial vehicle space, Pony.ai recently secured $462 million in funding. Meanwhile, Cathay Capital led RMB100 million round for Waytous, which provides autonomous vehicles to the mining industry, while Bosch Group provided Series B funding for UISEE Technology, an autonomous luggage transportation specialist.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Greater China
• Early-stage
• Technology
• TMT
• automobiles
• Yunqi Partners