China carmaker SAIC raises $148m for mobility unit

Following completion of the round – described as a Series B – SAIC Mobility has achieved unicorn status with a valuation of more than USD 1bn. Investors included SAIC Group, the carmaker’s parent entity, Gaohang Management Consulting, and other unnamed institutional players.

An additional contribution came from Momenta, a China-based autonomous driving technology developer that has received substantial private funding. SAIC is one of several automakers on Momenta's shareholder register.

SAIC Mobility was established in 2018, initially as a ride-hailing platform. The company has since sought to position itself as a one-stop travel service aimed at individuals with the introduction of chauffeured vehicle services and new car test drives as well as rental packages for corporates.

The corporate service is relatively mature, with operations in 150 cities and a 5,000-strong customer roster that includes more than 300 Fortune 500 companies. Meanwhile, the development of the ride-hailing and chauffeured vehicle service is focused on top-tier cities in the Yangtze River Delta.

Ultimately, SAIC Motor wants to create a standalone business that taps into its core automotive industrial supply chain competencies and targets key growth areas around electrification, vehicle sharing, intelligent networking, and internationalisation. It said in a statement that SAIC Mobility would pursue an IPO “in a timely manner.”

The robotaxi unit was established last December as a collaboration involving SAIC Mobility, Momenta, and SAIC Motor’s artificial intelligence lab. The goal is to develop a domestic fleet capable of level-four (L4) autonomy, where the car is fully autonomous in certain environments but still needs a driver in the seat.

Momenta, which develops sensors and systems that enable autonomy rather than focus on building its own fleets, is already pursuing a two-track approach. SAIC Motor is a key partner in these efforts.

The company is working on L2 solutions – where there is a driver override function – that are much closer to commercialisation while using the same software interface and underlying platform infrastructure to develop L4. It wants to create an automated closed-loop ecosystem comprising mass-production data and algorithms, leading to a “flywheel” effect that speeds up implementation.

After closing a USD 500m round last November that featured an assortment of financial and strategic investors, including SAIC Motor, Momenta said its L2 solution would enter mass production this year in SAIC’s premium electric vehicle line. The company was also preparing to commence L4 tests through ride-hailing platforms, again supported by SAIC Motor.

In the latest announcement, SAIC Motor referenced the flywheel effect in relation to the robotaxi business. It said that Momenta’s investment represents a solid technical guarantee for the ongoing commercialisation of the service. There are currently 100 robotaxi operation sites in Shanghai and Suzhou.

Jingxiong Zhuang, CEO of SAIC Mobility, noted that the successful Series B fundraise, which came despite the ongoing impact of COVID-19, reflected the company’s commitment to providing high-quality and safe service and pursuing a sustainable and profitable business model.

China’s leading developers of autonomous vehicle fleets are WeRide and Pony.ai. The two companies - which are often compared to Waymo and Tesla in the US - have received significant private funding.

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

• Topics
• Greater China
• Expansion
• Technology
• China
• autonomous driving
• automobiles
• Growth capital