PATEO, an Internet of Vehicles (IoV) technology service and product provider, has secured 1.5 billion yuan ($207.8 million) in an equity financing round. The investor details were not disclosed.
The Shanghai-headquartered firm will use the proceeds to research and develop next-generation domain controllers and related products, according to a release on Monday.
Alongside the equity investment, the firm also secured an over 10-billion yuan ($1.4 billion) syndicated loan facility from a total of seven state-owned banks including the likes of China Construction Bank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), per the release.
Founded in 2009, the firm offers a wide range of telematics software and hardware products including active safety systems to automotive electronics, software, operating systems, application software, and connected vehicle ecosystems, according to its website.
It previously notched 300 million yuan ($41.6 million) in November 2022.
With offices in Changchun and Beijing, the firm is equipped with R&D centres across cities like Nanjing, Shenyang, Dalian, and Wuhan, counting state-owned automakers FAW, Dongfeng Motor Group, and consumer electronics major Xiaomi among some of its backers.
Startups in the automobile and part industry in Greater China pocketed almost $7.1 billion in 2023, making it the second most-funded sector after the chip-making sector, DealStreetAsia’s proprietary data show.
However, the total investments went down by 21.8% compared to 2022 when almost $9.1 billion was secured, as the automotive industry faced several headwinds including layoffs, closure, short runways, and cost reductions.