BY AUTOMOTIVE VENTURES | 27 MARCH 2023 | VIEW ONLINE ➡️

We will be conducting the final close of the Automotive Ventures DealerFund at the end of April. If you’re a dealer who wants to invest in early-stage AutoTech companies that benefit your business, let me know. We are still accepting new investors. (Link)

The number of U.S. automotive dealerships rose slightly in 2022 after dropping two years in a row. Automotive News counted 18,271 franchised dealerships on Jan. 1, up 0.4 percent from a year earlier. (Link)Hyundai Motor Group has developed an automatic charging robot (ACR) for electric vehicles (EV). (Video)Ford Motor Company says its EV business unit, called Model e, is expected to lose $3 billion this year. That contrasts with forecasts of $7 billion in profit for the combustion unit and $6 billion for its commercial business. The projection would bring the total amount lost on EVs to $6 billion from 2021 through 2023. Still, the company stood by its goal of earning an 8% profit margin on EVs — and 10 percent overall — by the end of 2026. (Link)Jaguar has started the process of reducing stores by offering dealers extra allocations of hot-selling Land Rover units if they give up their Jaguar franchises. It's unclear how many dealers have already accepted the offer, and it could be as many as 40. Jaguar Land Rover started 2023 with 395 U.S. dealerships. (Link)Since the earliest days of the automotive industry, executives have been obsessed with cutting costs. But their efforts have taken on new urgency as auto executives are squeezed fighting a twin battle of having to navigate inflationary cost increases, while also investing heavily in electric vehicles as investors and regulators give priority to this technology. (Link)For many EVs, there is no way to repair or assess even slightly damaged battery packs after accidents, forcing insurance companies to write off cars with few miles -- leading to higher premiums and undercutting gains from going electric. Battery packs can cost tens of thousands of dollars and represent up to 50 percent of an EV's price tag, often making it uneconomical to replace them. (Link)Since January, the price of lithium (the common ingredient in almost all EV batteries) has dropped nearly 20%, even as sales of electric vehicles have soared. The drop in commodity prices has made it easier for carmakers to cut prices for electric vehicles. This month, Tesla lowered the prices of its two most expensive cars, the Model S sedan and Model X sport utility vehicle, by thousands of dollars. (Link)Bain & Company's Global Private Equity Report 2023 notes that there is $3.7 trillion in global private capital "dry powder" as of the end of 2022. (Link)We are living in the Golden Age of the automobile. The new 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 can get up to 1,025 hp when running on E85 fuel, accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in 1.66 seconds, and runs the quarter-mile in a certified 8.91 seconds at 151.17 mph. (Link)​Have a great week,Steve Greenfield

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🗞️ I'm excited to welcome Argentum Capital Partners to Automotive Ventures portfolio company WarrCloud and welcome Sohum Doshi to the Board! (Link)🎤 It was a real pleasure speaking at the MotorK Automotive I/O conference about "The Future of Automotive Retail" (Link)

🎤 Thanks to NCM Associates for having me down to Key West FL to present to their Ford 20-Group. (Link)🗞️ On this week's Automotive Ventures Future of Automotive segment on CBT News, we report on a right-to-repair lawsuit against Tesla, and we explore how fragile (and expensive) EV batteries are to repair/replace. (Link)

🌟Total Customer Connect (TCC) helps dealerships deliver a premium customer experience for customers ready to buy and vehicle owners ready for service, and guarantees improved profitability in your dealership service drive. (More info)🌟 Altelium offers insurance for batteries, driven by real-time, AI-powered data analytics. (More info)

🚗 Dealer Tech & Auto Commerce

Caramel launched its digital checkout platform with the goal of transforming private party and independent dealer car sales and announced it raised a $12 million seed funding round from lead investors Zeev Ventures, Primera Capital, and Hearst Ventures. (Link to article)Ritchie Bros. (NYSE: RBA) has completed its acquisition of IAA. (Link to article)

✈️ Air Mobility & SpaceWingtra, whose drones are used to perform surveying missions by organizations around the world, has raised $22 million in Series B funding, from DiamondStream Partners, EquityPitcher Ventures, Verve Ventures, the European Innovation Council Fund (EIC Fund), ACE & Company, and Spring Mountain Capital founder, John L. Steffens. (Link to article)

🦾 Autonomy, Robotics & AI

LexxPluss, a Japan-based startup that designs and develops autonomous mobile robots to transport loads and optimize workflows within warehouses and logistic sites, is preparing to enter the U.S. with a fresh injection of about $10.7 million (1.45 billion JPY) of Series A funding that values the company at approximately $38.8 million (5.26 billion yen). Drone Fund led the latest financing along with SOSV’s HAX, Incubate Fund, SBI Investment, and DBJ Capital. (Link to article)Nimble Robotics, an autonomous logistics firm focused on warehouse automation, announced a $65 million Series B raise to support the buildout of a network of robotic fulfillment centers, which will pick, pack and ship e-commerce orders — while reducing warehouse space by up to 75%. The round was led by Cedar Pine and also included participation by DNS Capital, GSR Ventures and Breyer Capital. (Link to article)Verity, creators of the first commercially successful inventory tracking solution powered by fully autonomous indoor drones, announced a 30M CHF ($32M USD) Series B funding round, led by A.P. Moller Holding with participation from Exor Ventures. (Link to article)

⚡Electrification & Alternative Fuels

Amogy, a pioneer of emission-free, energy-dense ammonia power solutions, announced its $139 million Series B-1 fundraising, led by SK Innovation, and joined by Temasek, Korea Zinc, Aramco Ventures, AP Ventures, MOL PLUS, Yanmar Ventures, Zeon Ventures Inc. and DCVC. This funding will enable Amogy to bring its first product to market in 2024. (Link to article)Chargetrip, an API-based range prediction tool and EV routing engine located in Amsterdam, has raised €10 million in a Series A funding round led by HSBC Asset Management alongside participation from Riverstone Holdings and existing investors Vindeggen, Axel Springer, Porsche AG, and Blue Bear Capital. (Link to article)CHARGE+ZONE, an India-based company specializing in high-speed charging networks for electric buses/trucks and electric cars, has raised $54 million in Series A1 funding led by BlueOrchard Finance, a member of the Schroders Group. (Link to article)BMW i Ventures has co-lead an investment in the $16.1M Series A round for startup DeepDrive. Other investors include UVC Partners, Bayern Kapital, and Continental’s Corporate Venture Capital Unit. DeepDrive has developed a cost and resource-efficient dual-rotor motor, extending the range of electric vehicles. (Link to article)Revolv, a full-service provider of electric medium-to-heavy commercial fleets, has closed a $15 million Series A funding round led by Greenbacker. The company is on track to deliver over 100 vehicles ranging from Class 2 through Class 8 by the end of 2023, with plans to scale and manage a fleet of vehicles in the thousands by the following years. (Link to article)Viridos, the leading algae biofuel company dedicated to creating sustainable, low-carbon, algae-based jet and diesel fuel, has raised a $25M Series A equity investment, led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) and joined by Chevron U.S.A. and United Airlines Ventures. The funding will be used for R&D to further increase algae oil productivity to reach commercially deployable levels. (Link to article)

ZEWAY announced the closing of a series-B round of financing for €26.75 million. ZEWAY disrupted the Paris electric moped market by launching the first infrastructure for swapping and recharging shared batteries, alongside a leasing offer for personal electric mopeds using this infrastructure with its first model, swapperOne, available for €130/month all included (moped, battery swap, unlimited mileage, insurance and maintenance). (Link to article)

 🚢 Maritime

Swedish company Candela raised SEK 210 million (around $20 million) in a round co-led by EQT Ventures and investor duo Joel Eklund (Fosielund Holding AB) and Svante Nilo Bengtsson (Marknadspotential AB), with participation from Ocean Zero. Candela this summer will launch its 30-passenger commercial hydrofoil shuttle, the P-12, an electric-powered hydrofoil that effectively flies over the surface of the water on computer-guided underwater wings. It has a range of up to 60 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 27 knots. Candela estimates that the P-12 uses 80% less energy than a traditional vessel. (Link to article)

 🏍️ Micromobility

Kabira Mobility, a leading electric bike manufacturer in India, has secured a USD$50 million investment from Al Abdulla Group at an undisclosed valuation to accelerate growth and ramp up the production of its electric bike models KM3000 and KM4000. (Link to article)Lanterne has raised £485k in seed funding to scale its fleet optimization software for micromobility providers. Lanterne’s investors include Melbourne-based Skalata and Dutch VC Rockstart. The software uses machine learning to predict demand for shared vehicles and then creates an optimized route for fleet technicians to efficiently position vehicles, swap batteries and conduct maintenance. (Link to article)E-cargo bike delivery company Zedify is expanding its operations across the UK after raising £5 million of funding, led by Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital and MEIF Paris-Saclay Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund. (Link to article)

📱Shared Mobility & Subscription

Vienna-based ELOOP, an e-carsharing company, has secured fresh funding led by The Sharing Group, an impact investor in the mobility sector. The funding amount was not disclosed. ELOOP says it will use the funds to accelerate its growth in Austria as well as expand to the first German city, Munich. Additionally, the existing fleet in Vienna will be doubled. (Link to article)Kakaomobility, the ride-hailing subsidiary of South Korean messaging and internet giant Kakao, has acquired Splyt, a startup out of London that works with apps in areas like travel, ride-hailing and finance to help them build out “super app” strategies by integrating other services. Kakao Mobility currently offers limited services in about 30 markets outside of South Korea: most recently, it launched in Guam last year and Laos earlier this year. (Link to article)

🚛 Supply Chain & Logistics

CO2 in supply chains can make up as much as 90% of a company’s carbon footprint, and worldwide more than half of all emissions can be traced back to only a handful of supply chains. Berlin-based startup The Climate Choice closed a $2 million round to help companies cut a chunk of their carbon out of that part of their emissions, too. Gutter Capital led the $2 million equity financing round. (Link to article)

🏎️ Early-stage AutoTech or Mobility founder? We'd love to hear from you.🏁 Interested in investing directly into early-stage AutoTech and Mobility companies? Check out The Automotive Ventures Investment Club (AVIC)📈 Are you an auto dealer interested in investing in early-stage AutoTech? Learn more about the DealerFund here.✨ Looking for our Dealership AutoTech Company Landscape? View that here.✨ Looking for our Mobility Tech Company Landscape? View that here.🚀 Interested in exploring Automotive Ventures' portfolio companies shown below? Check them out here.