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Here are the past week's AutoTech and Mobility transactions. For a more detailed monthly recap, check out our
. Enjoy!
Last Week's Auto-Tech Transactions:
Dealer Tech & Auto Commerce:
Automotive Ventures Portfolio Company
, the first privacy-tech company focused on identifying the challenges posed by vehicle data and creating solutions to better protect consumers, has closed a new financing round ahead of a wave of significant regulatory changes coming into effect. I'm excited that Automotive Ventures is continuing to support the Privacy4Cars team! (
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(NYSE: CZOO), the UK’s leading online car retailer, which makes buying and selling a car as simple as ordering any other product online, has sold its Spanish subscription business, SWIPCAR, to Renting Finders. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The disposal is a further step in Cazoo’s withdrawal from mainland Europe as part of its strategy to focus exclusively on the UK market. (
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British automotive technology company MotorK has announced it has sold its B2C business
to GEDI Gruppo Editoriale and its subsidiary AutoXY S.p.A. The new combination between DriveK and AutoXY will create the largest new car marketplace in Europe, according to MotorK. It will allow consumers to select, compare and configure their next new car in Italy, France, Spain and Germany. (
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Aftermarket & Repair:
AutoNation has entered into an agreement to acquire
, a full-service mobile solution for automotive repair and maintenance, headquartered in Los Angeles, CA with a significant operational footprint in the southern and western United States. The transaction, pursuant to which AutoNation will acquire RepairSmith for $190 million, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2023, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. (
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New Zealand-based
raises $21 million Series A, led by Octopus Ventures. Car parts buyers require specific parts to fit specific vehicles, making for a supply-constrained environment. Partly wants to ease those constraints by connecting parts buyers around the world with the correct parts. The two-year-old startup is not a car parts marketplace. Rather, Partly powers marketplaces like eBay and Shopify with its database of over 50 million parts from more than 20,000 suppliers and OEMs. (
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Electrification & Alternative Fuels:
has raised $10 million, ten months after raising its $5 million Series A funding. Ultra Capital LLC, a Philadelphia-based investment firm that focuses on sustainable infrastructure and energy businesses, led the round. Funds from the investment will be used to expand the company's charger network and quadruple its employees. (
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, Chinese automaker GEELY's upmarket electric car brand, has confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering, aiming to raise more than $1 billion. In what would be the first major Chinese flotation in the U.S. in more than a year and a half, Zeekr is seeking a valuation of more than $10 billion. That compares with a valuation of about $9 billion in its maiden external fundraising last year. (
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, the team behind React, has secured $4.2 million in funding to develop the world’s first community-owned, decentralized Web3 platform that offers small businesses and individuals cash and tokenized incentives for connecting their energy storage assets. React’s network will allow participants to connect their home batteries to the company’s Web3 network in order to be rewarded for the relative contribution of their specific assets. The first funding round was co-led by venture capital firms Lerer Hippeau and Lattice with follow-on participation from other notable investment firms including VaynerFund, CoinShares, and Digital Currency Group. (
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Autonomy, Robotics & AI:
, a global leader in autonomous solutions for heavy equipment, announced a $38 million Series B round of funding with key investors including Builders VC, McKinley Management, LLC, George Kaiser Family Foundation, and Energy Innovation Capital. (
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, an Israeli provider of computer vision and AI/machine learning algorithms for traffic management, raised $5M in Series A funding. The round was led by Champel Capital and Mobilitech Capital. ITC has developed computer vision and AI/machine learning algorithms that predict traffic patterns and prevent traffic congestion before they accumulate, using existing cameras and traffic light infrastructure. (
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Shared Mobility & Subscription:
Carsharing company
made its public market debut Friday through a merger with blank-check company InterPrivate Acquisition Partners II. (
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, the modern, mobile hospitality company with a fleet of high-quality, high-tech campervans, today announced it raised $3MM in a funding round led by TechNexus Venture Collaborative. The new funding will go towards accelerating Cabana’s continued growth into markets across the U.S., and comes on the heels of expansions into San Francisco, California and Austin, Texas, announced earlier this year. Bookings out of Austin are officially available online, with the first trips set to embark on January 9, 2023. (
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Air Mobility & Space:
Elon Musk’s
is offering to sell insider shares at a price that would raise the closely held company’s valuation to about $140 billion. Space Exploration Technologies Corp., as the company is formally called, is offering the shares for $77 apiece. The $140 billion figure compares with a $127 billion valuation in July. (
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— which develops platforms and planes for autonomous flying systems, targeting the U.S. military and its allies as customers — has raised $60 million in funding. The money is coming in as an additional part of Shield AI’s Series E, and it brings the total round to $225 million. Shield AI announced the previous $165 million tranche in June, which gave the startup a valuation of $2.3 billion. This latest $60 million came from a single investor, the US Innovative Technology Fund (USIT). (
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Supply Chain & Logistics:
, a Chicago-based leader in building next-generation software for the freight rail industry, announced $10.1 million in Series A funding. The latest round of funding was led by Crosslink Capital with participation from Slow Ventures, 9 Yards Capital, Motivate Venture Capital, and Extra Credit Ventures, as well as returning investors Construct Capital, 8VC, and BoxGroup. (
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Arsenal Growth Equity has co-led a $33 million Series B funding round into
, the innovative leading provider of solutions in last-mile delivery fulfillment. The round was co-led by Piva Capital. By automating last-mile logistics, OneRail intelligently selects the right shipping mode and courier or carrier network to optimize every order. The delivery operating system is further connected to an unparalleled real-time network of nearly 10 million drivers, supported by its Exceptions Assist™ operations layer — a USA-based exceptions management team available 24/7 who actively get ahead of delivery issues before they occur. (
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, a logistics visibility software startup based out of Berlin, has generated €2.9 million in its latest fundraise. The round was co-led by Cavalry Ventures and Dynamo Ventures and also featured Entrepreneur First, Angel Invest, and Prequel Ventures. rouvia's eForwarding product allows logistics teams to map out transport capacity on railways, waterways and the road, using real-time data to compare different options. (
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Micromobility:
EV maker
., a developer and marketer of e-bikes and e-motorcycles, has set terms for a proposed $23M initial public offering. Malibu-based Sondors said in a filing that it is interested in offering 2.5M shares priced between $8 and $10, which would raise around $23M if priced at the midpoint. (
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has come up with a scalable way to do micromobility-powered urban logistics — cargo e-bikes with built-in cover from the elements and attachable containers. Onomotion just closed its Series A, with €6 million ($6.3 million) in equity and €15 million ($15.7 million) in debt. The equity comes from Proeza Ventures, zu na mi, the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) and existing investors; and the debt, in the form of a bond, is operated by GLS Bank. (
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Amsterdam-based
has raised €10 million in a new financing round explicitly aimed at expanding the startup’s reach beyond The Netherlands. The Sharing Group and Participatiefonds Duurzaam Economie Noord-Holland (PDENH) led the round, and were joined by existing investor Fairtree Elevant Ventures. (
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, a Belgium-based company developing innovative drivetrain technology for the cycling industry, has closed a funding round of €22 million led by Active Partners, the investors behind well-known cycling brands Rapha and Evans Cycles. Existing investor Bridford Investments Limited continues to support Classified by participating in the round. (
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Have a great week,
Steve Greenfield
678.576.9972
