venture

Volvo invests in autonomous car software developer Apex

January 4, 2020 by David Edwards Leave a Comment

Volvo Group Venture Capital has invested in Apex.AI, a developer of software for autonomous cars and mobility.

Volvo says the investment will fund the development of a “safety-certified software framework for autonomous systems”.

Apex, a Palo Alto, California-based company founded in 2017, is building an automotive-grade version of Robot Operating System, an established open source software framework commonly used in robotics and autonomous systems research. [Read more…] about Volvo invests in autonomous car software developer Apex

GM and LG agree $2.3 billion partnership to mass-produce car battery cells

December 10, 2019 by Sam Francis Leave a Comment

General Motors and LG Chem have agreed a partnership to mass-produce battery cells for future electric vehicles.

Together, the companies will invest up to a total of $2.3 billion through a new, equally owned joint venture company.

The joint venture will establish a battery cell assembly plant on a greenfield manufacturing site in the Lordstown area of Northeast Ohio that will create more than 1,100 new jobs. [Read more…] about GM and LG agree $2.3 billion partnership to mass-produce car battery cells

Hyundai and Aptiv form autonomous driving joint venture

September 24, 2019 by Mai Tao

Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv are forming an autonomous driving joint venture.

The companies say the partnership “brings together one of the industry’s most innovative vehicle technology providers and one of the world’s largest vehicle manufacturers”.

The joint venture will advance the design, development and commercialization of SAE Level 4 and 5 autonomous technologies, furthering the partners’ leadership position in the global autonomous driving ecosystem. [Read more…] about Hyundai and Aptiv form autonomous driving joint venture

Magna signs first complete vehicle manufacturing joint venture in China

August 13, 2019 by Anna

Magna, BAIC Group and the Zhenjiang government celebrated the signing of a framework agreement governing their electric vehicle manufacturing joint venture in Zhenjiang, China, which marks another milestone of their continued cooperation.

The transaction, which is pending regulatory approval and other closing conditions, is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019.

The joint venture, which is to be controlled by an affiliate of the BAIC Group, is Magna’s first investment in a complete vehicle manufacturing facility outside Europe.

Teralytics raises $17.5 million for ‘world’s first intelligent mobility operating system’

August 6, 2019 by David Edwards

Switzerland-based Teralytics has raised $17.5 million for what is described as “the world’s first intelligent mobility operating system”.

innogy Ventures, the venture capital investment arm of innogy Innovation Hub, has invested in Teralytics as part of a $17.5 million funding round. innogy Ventures and innogy Innovation Hub are backed by innogy SE, a leading German energy company.

The round was led by Robert Bosch Venture Capital, the corporate venture capital company of the Bosch Group. Other participants included Deutsche Bahn Digital Ventures, LBBW Venture Capital and Liil Ventures, as well as existing investors Atomico and Lakestar. [Read more…] about Teralytics raises $17.5 million for ‘world’s first intelligent mobility operating system’

Robert Bosch Venture Capital leads growth funding round in MegaRobo

July 16, 2019 by Anna

Robert Bosch Venture Capital, the corporate venture capital company of the Bosch Group, is leading a growth financing round in MegaRobo.

The Chinese high-tech robotic company with over 100 employees is headquartered in Beijing and integrates cutting-edge machine vision and artificial intelligence (AI) to provide modular automation solutions for lab automation, smart retail and light industrial sectors.

“MegaRobo’s technology increases efficiency in production automation. Already today, robots from MegaRobo are used for special applications in the end-of-line production of household appliances at Bosch”, says RBVC managing director Dr Ingo Ramesohl.

ZF and Foton open joint facility in China to produce automated commercial vehicles

July 9, 2019 by Mai Tao

German automotive components giant ZF Friedrichshafen and Chinese commercial vehicles manufacturer Foton have jointly opened a facility to produce automated commercial vehicles.

The joint plant in Jiaxing will produce automatic commercial vehicle transmissions for the Chinese market, and the partners say they see “excellent market potential for automated commercial vehicles in the next five years”.

At the end of 2016, ZF entered into two joint ventures with Foton, a Chinese commercial vehicle manufacturer, to produce and sell commercial vehicle transmissions. [Read more…] about ZF and Foton open joint facility in China to produce automated commercial vehicles

Alstom starts production of passenger locomotives in Kazakhstan

June 10, 2019 by Anna

Alstom has started production of passenger electric locomotives at its 75%-owned EKZ joint venture in Nur-Sultan (Astana), Kazakhstan.

These locomotives are part of a contract signed with KTZ (Kazakhstan Railways) for delivery and maintenance of 302 Prima T8 KZ8A and 119 Prima M4 KZ4AT electric locomotives.

Alstom is expanding manufacturing lines at EKZ including for the construction of Prima T8 freight locomotives KZ8A for Kazakhstan and the production of on-board transformers for AZ8A, for export to Azerbaijan, and now the assembly of Prima M4 passenger locomotives.

Xometry raises $50 million for on-demand parts marketplace

May 24, 2019 by Anna

Xometry, the largest on-demand manufacturing marketplace, has raised $50m in equity funding, led by Greenspring Associates.

The new funding will back efforts to build a platform connecting suppliers to businesses that need prototypes and small runs of parts.

Dell Technologies Capital will also participate in the round, along with all previous venture and strategic investors including BMW i Ventures, Foundry Group, GE Ventures, Highland Capital Partners, Maryland Venture Fund and Almaz Capital. Xometry has raised a total of $113m to date.

BASF invests in quantum computing startup Zapata

May 16, 2019 by Anna

BASF Venture Capital is joining a group of prominent investors in the Series A investment round of Zapata Computing, Inc.

Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Zapata is developing both a powerful software platform as well as specific applications for Global 1000 companies to effectively use a range of emerging quantum computing hardware.

By investing in Zapata, BASF Venture Capital supports BASF’s strategic goal to take advantage of the opportunities that digitalisation offers along the entire value chain.

[Read more…]