Lineup of Zoox L3 autonomous cars.
Autonomous vehicle startup Zoox has signed a $200 million convertible note— the first new investment since the Silicon Valley company fired its co-founder and original CEO last year.
The note is the initial step in closing the company’s Series C funding round that’s expected to be finalized later this year or early 2020, according to source familiar with the situation who added, “In terms of investors, we are excited to have both existing and new investors partner with us on this.”
News of the investment was first reported by Axios. com.
Based in Foster City, Calif., Zoox was founded in 2014, taking on the ambitious mission of developing and building autonomous vehicles from the ground up, rather than apply technology to vehicles built by established automakers or other companies. For example, Alphabet Inc.‘s autonomous vehicle unit Waymo has deals with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Jaguar Land Rover to test its software on custom made vehicles.
According to a recent post on its Linkedin page, Zoox is expanding testing of its robocars beyond California’s San Francisco Bay Area to Las Vegas, saying, “Alongside our beloved SF, Vegas will serve as an anchor market for us to rigorously test and validate, as we continue to create autonomous mobility from the ground up.”
In August, 2018 Zoox unexpectedly fired co-founder and CEO Tim Kentley-Klay, just one month after it raised $465 million, boosting its bankroll for developing electric robotaxis. The company finally hired a new CEO in January, naming Intel’s former chief of strategy, Aicha Evans, to the post.
Aicha Evans, senior vice president and chief strategy officer of Intel Corp., speaks during the … [+]
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While Australian Kentley-Klay is an artist and designer who conjured the Zoox mission, Evans has a deep tech industry background spending a dozen years at Intel.
This new infusion of funds will no doubt add some momentum to Zoox’s quest to develop and produce its very individual version of a self-driving car—one that’s designed with no dedicated front or rear ends, no steering wheel, brake or accelerator pedals or even dashboard controls, as it focuses on passenger comfort and getting from A to B by just getting inside.