Chinese autonomous driving startup Momenta has completed a US$500m series C funding round, taking its total investment so far to approximately US$1bn. Backing has come from a variety of industry giants including GM (which invested US$300m in September), SAIC Motor, Toyota, Bosch and most recently, Jack Ma’s Yunfeng Capital.
The company is taking what it calls a scalable path towards full self-driving capabilities, starting out with self-parking and in-cabin perception systems, before moving on toward full autonomy. A cornerstone of the company’s system is the use of data-driven rather than rules-based algorithms, which it says deliver lower costs and greater efficiency. This forms one part of its ‘Flywheel’ approach, which combines said algorithms with closed-loop automation and harnessing massive data.
“Customers in China are embracing electrification and advanced self-driving technology faster than anywhere else in the world, and the agreement between GM and Momenta will accelerate our deployment of next-generation solutions tailor-made for our consumers in China,” remarked Julian Blissett, executive vice president of General Motors and president of GM China, on announcement of the auto makers investment in September.