Chinese autonomous driving firm DeepRoute.ai raises US$100 million as adoption accelerates
The Shenzhen-based start-up expects nearly 200,000 cars to be equipped with its advanced assisted driving system by the end of 2025
Chinese autonomous driving technology developer DeepRoute.ai has raised US$100 million from an carmaker, the company said on Monday, as it looks to bolster mass adoption of its systems on vehicles ahead of Tesla in China.
The Shenzhen-based start-up expects nearly 200,000 cars to be equipped with its advanced assisted driving system on Chinese roads by the end of 2025, CEO Maxwell Zhou told Reuters in an interview, up from about 20,000 now.
The system can navigate urban traffic similar to Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD), which the US carmaker expects to launch in China in coming months.
DeepRoute.ai plans to launch more than 10 models with its carmaker clients in 2025, Zhou said. The first model equipped with its system launched in August and two more models, including one under the smart brand co-owned by Geely and Mercedes-Benz, will be delivered to consumers this year, he said.
DeepRoute.ai’s existing backers include e-commerce giant Alibaba and the sole investor in this fundraising round is a Chinese carmaker that the company declined to name. It also did not disclose the valuation of the company after the fundraising.