Chinese autonomous truck startup Inceptio raises US$120m from CATL, others

[SHANGHAI] China's Inceptio Technology, a startup developing self-driving trucks, said on Monday it has raised US$120 million in its latest funding led by top Chinese electric vehicle battery maker CATL.

The funding comes six months after a US$100 million funding in April. Logistics firm GLP, Inceptio's key strategic investor G7 and Nio Capital also invested in the new funding, Inceptio said in a statement. It did not disclose its valuation.

CATL, which supplies Volkswagen and Tesla, is working with truck makers to develop a business model for electric trucks using its battery-swapping technologies.

Inceptio is now focusing on level three autonomous technologies, which refer to drivers being able to turn their attention away from driving tasks but still requires them to respond immediately in some scenarios. It has partnerships with Dongfeng Motor and Sinotruk Hong Kong.

The truck manufacturing industry is expected to be an earlier adopter of autonomous driving technology than passenger vehicle manufacturing as driving on motorways is more predictable than on busy city streets.

In China, the world's biggest auto market, Inceptio faces competition from TuSimple, which has a partnership with Volkswagen's Traton commercial truck unit, and Toyota-backed Pony.ai, which is developing autonomous trucks with FAW.

REUTERS