China LiDAR specialist Innovusion raises $60m
Innovusion, a Chinese developer of LiDAR technology used in autonomous driving, has raised $60 million in funding. The company is best known as a supplier to domestic electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Nio.
The round, which values Innovusion at $300 million, features Temasek Holdings, BAI, and Joy Capital. Sources close to the situation told AVCJ that the deal has yet to close and there may yet be small changes in its size.
LiDAR - which stands for light detection and ranging - is a technology that uses light to measure distance. Innovusion claims that its LiDAR can detect small obstacles - such as pedestrians - at long distances, even in heavy rain. The technology aids vehicle navigation through object perception and simultaneous localization and mapping.
The company was founded in 2016 by Junwei Bao, formerly a director in Baidu's autonomous driving division. It is headquartered in California and has a China office in Suzhou, Jiangsu province.
Innovusion raised a $30 million Series A in 2018 led by Nio Capital, an investment arm of the EV maker. F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures, and Gaorong Capital also took part. Gaorong led a round of undisclosed size in 2017, according to AVCJ Research.
Other Chinese LiDAR specialists that have received VC funding include Hesai Technology and RoboSense. Meanwhile, Australia-based Baraja counts Sequoia Capital China among its investors.
Hesai's $173 million Series C, which closed in early 2020 was said at the time to be the largest-ever funding round for a LiDAR developer. The company was founded in Silicon Valley in 2013 but relocated to Shanghai the following year. Most of its customers are in the US and Europe.
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