Only a few months after announcing a $3.6 million seed round, Cambridge-based self-driving car company nuTonomy said on Tuesday it has raised a $16 million Series A round to launch a fleet of driverless taxis in Singapore in 2018.
"The government is strongly supportive of the technology in the form of having clear regulations."
The round was led by new investor Highland Capital Partners, with participation from existing investors Fontinalis Partners, Samsung Ventures and Signal Ventures, as well as another new investor, EDBI, the investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board.
Karl Iagnemma, nuTonomy's CEO and co-founder previously told BostInno about the company's plans to launch a commercial self-driving taxi service in Singapore, pointing to the city's strong interest in supporting companies like his and developing infrastructure for self-driving cars. The company has a research and development office in Singapore.
"The government is strongly supportive of the technology in the form of having clear regulations," Iagnemma said, "but they're also providing financial support for companies like us and large companies interested in deploying self-driving cars."
NuTonomy's self-driving taxi service in Singapore will be what it calls "the first of its kind complete solution for operating large fleets of autonomous taxis." That includes software for autonomous navigation through urban environments, smartphone-based ride hailing, fleeting routing and management and remote-vehicle control.
Beyond plans for a self-driving taxi service in Singapore, the company has been developing autonomous vehicle software for automotive manufacturers and suppliers, including British car giant Jaguar Land Rover—which had already made it a profitable venture, Iagnemma said back in January.
"nuTonomy is a global leader in the self-driving car space, and they’re leading the charge to change the fundamentals of human transportation," Bob Davis, general partner at Highland, said in a statement. "We’re very excited to help nuTonomy put the world’s first autonomous taxi fleet on the road.”
