Meridiano

Add Article

No Image Available

Article Details

Title

Article: China’s WeRide raises US$200 million from bus maker Yutong Group as autonomous driving race heats up

Impact Score

5 / 10

AI Summary (Processed Content)

Chinese autonomous driving start-up WeRide has raised $200 million from the commercial bus manufacturer Yutong Group. This strategic investment aims to promote the large-scale commercial use of driverless buses and minibuses through joint development.

The deal highlights the increasing interest from traditional automakers in the competitive autonomous driving sector. The industry is anticipating further policy support from the Chinese government.

The main topics covered are a major investment in an autonomous vehicle start-up, collaboration between a tech firm and a traditional manufacturer, and the heated competitive landscape for self-driving technology in China.

Original URL

https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3115052/chinas-weride-raises-us200-million-bus-maker-yutong-group-autonomous?utm_source=rss_feed

Source Feed

Innovation - South China Morning Post

Published Date

2020-12-23 03:14

Fetched Date

2026-03-04 14:33

Processed Date

2026-03-04 15:07

Embedding Status

Present

Cluster ID

Not Clustered

Raw Extracted Content

China’s WeRide raises US$200 million from bus maker Yutong Group as autonomous driving race heats up
- Self-driving start-up WeRide has raised US$200 million from Yutong Group, China’s largest commercial bus manufacturer
- China’s autonomous driving market is heating up with more interest from traditional carmakers and expectations of further policy support
Chinese autonomous driving start-up WeRide has raised US$200 million in Series B1 funding from China’s top commercial bus manufacturer, Yutong Group, as more traditional vehicle makers look to develop autonomous driving technologies and the industry expects more policy support from the government.
“WeRide is now the only autonomous driving company to obtain strategic investment from leading automakers of both commercial vehicles and passenger vehicles,” the companies said in a joint press release on Wednesday.
Before Yutong’s investment, WeRide had already raised a total of US$207 million from nine investors including the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance and Chinese EV maker Xpeng Motors’ CEO He Xiaopeng as of May 1, according to data from PitchBook, which tracks deals in private capital markets.
The companies said that Yutong’s investment was the “largest-ever investment in autonomous driving made by a leading Chinese automaker”, and that they will team up to promote the commercial use of fully driverless vehicles, including minibuses and city buses, on a large scale.
“WeRide and Yutong Group will engage in extensive cooperation in key domains such as research and development, vehicle platforms and mobility services,” WeRide CEO and co-founder Tony Han said.
The investment comes as more traditional vehicle makers look to find a way into the autonomous driving industry, which has attracted billions of dollars of investment globally – making it one of the key sectors in the fast-growing field of artificial intelligence, where both China and the US are seeking supremacy.