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Autonomous vehicles
Tech

Alphabet’s self driving unit Waymo raises US$2.25 billion in first outside funding round

  • Last September, Morgan Stanley slashed its projected valuation of Waymo to US$105 billion from its earlier estimate of US$175 billion
  • AutoNation invested US$50 million in Waymo as part of the initial funding round

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Waymo, which has partnered with Lyft, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Jaguar Land Rover, is considering partnerships with other carmakers and transport service providers in markets outside North America. Photo: Handout
Reuters

Waymo, the self-driving unit of Alphabet, said it had raised US$2.25 billion in its first external investment round and expects to add more outside investors.

The company also disclosed its self-driving trucking business will be called Waymo Via.

Founded 11 years ago as a small project inside Google, Waymo is now widely considered the leader in developing self-driving technology. But Waymo and its principal rivals are still years away from building large-scale businesses around that technology, analysts believe.

The outside investors will help Waymo be more disciplined, Alphabet Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat told the Morgan Stanley investor conference on Monday.

Waymo Chief Executive Officer John Krafcik, in a media briefing late on Monday, declined to confirm whether Alphabet plans to sell or spin off Waymo, saying it was “certainly a possibility for the future.”

Krafcik described the outside investment as part of “an evolutionary path that we had always imagined” that could lead to “more independence” for Waymo.

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