China’s WeRide raises $310m

The first tranche closed at $200 million in December, with a further $110 million committed more recently across tranches two and three. WeRide has raised more than $500 million to date and has already kicked off its Series C round.

Other participants include CMC Capital Partners, CDB Equipment Manufacturing Fund, Hengjian Emerging Industries Fund, Zhuhai Huajin Capital and Tryin Capital. Existing investors such as Qiming Venture Partners, Sinovation Ventures and Kinzon Capital re-upped.

WeRide claims to be the first Chinese autonomous driving company to receive strategic backing from top-tier global automakers, namely Alliance Ventures - an investment unit established by Nissan Motor, Mitsubishi Motors, and Renault - and Yutong.

It was also the first to offer robotaxi services with level-four (L4) autonomous driving capability - the car is fully autonomous in certain environments, but still needs a driver in the seat – to the public. Working with Baiyun Taxi Group, the largest taxi company in southern China, and Science City Group (SCG), it operates across 144 square kilometers of Guangzhou’s Huangpu District.

Baiyun Taxi is responsible for operating and managing the vehicles, while SCG handles government relations and provides financial support. WeRide is the technology supplier. A total of 147,128 trips with more than 60,000 passengers were completed during WeRide Robotaxi's first year.

Li Zhang, COO of WeRide, told AVCJ in a previous interview that the company has established around 200 drop-off points in Huangpu, with customers encouraged to suggest additional locations. “This is to prepare for a future in which we don’t have a human safety driver and robotaxis can’t decide whether dropping off in a certain location would be safe or a violation of traffic laws,” he said.

This week WeRide will launch trials of its mini robobuses on Guangzhou International Bio Island, a biotech-focused business park. Robotaxis will also be available. Later this year, the company plans to deploy its self-driving fleet in downtown Guangzhou and expand into other cities.

Yutong collaborated with WeRide on the mini robobus - a mass-production model that has no steering wheel, accelerator pedal, or breaks - which is said to be the first of its kind in China. In addition, Yutong has established a 17.4-kilometer autonomous bus route in Zhengzhou.

"CMC has conducted in-depth research on the self-driving industry, and we firmly believe this technology will be a game-changer in the smart mobility market. WeRide Robotaxi - the first of its kind in China - has made a great impact. National guidelines have been announced to facilitate the development of the industry, and we are looking forward to helping industry leaders," said Ruigang Li, founding partner of CMC, in a statement.

WeRide’s major domestic competitor, Pony.ai, is also well-funded. Last November, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (OTTP) led a $267 million Series C round for the company at a post-money valuation of $5.3 billion. Pony has been running robotaxi pilot programs in China and the US.

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• Topics
• Greater China
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• China
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• Qiming Venture Partners
• China Media Capital
• Sinovation Ventures