Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank invests in Chinese driverless delivery van start-up Neolix
- SoftBank Ventures Asia and CICC Capital lead multimillion-dollar investment round in robo-van maker Neolix Technologies
- China’s US$46.3-billion ‘last mile’ delivery market has attracted tech giants Meituan and JD.com
SoftBank Group has become the latest investor in Chinese robo-van maker Neolix Technologies, as the Japanese venture capital firm looks for winners in mainland China’s tech start-up space.
SoftBank Ventures Asia, the early-stage venture branch of SoftBank, joined CICC Capital in the multimillion dollar series B round, Neolix said on Wednesday.
Venture capital firms Yunqi Capital and Glory Ventures also took part in the fundraising round.
“With the Neolix team’s outstanding skills in innovation, technology, and independent development, we are confident of their ability to expand into more business and social sectors as well as across global markets,” Likun Liu, principal of SoftBank Ventures Asia, said in a statement announcing the investment.
Analysts said the deal’s announcement could be seen as SoftBank’s effort to soothe investors’ and start-ups’ nerves, signalling that it does not plan to abandon China and will continue to invest in the nation’s start-ups.