Self-Driving Truck Startup Inceptio Raises $270 Million

What’s new: Chinese autonomous-driving truck developer Inceptio Technology raised $270 million in a series B equity funding round led by JD Logistics, Meituan and PAG.

The three-year-old startup expects to launch its first model by year-end. In 2020 the company raised $220 million in two rounds of financing.

Deppon Express (603056.SH), IDG Capital, CMB International, SDIC, Mirae Asset, Eight Roads, and Broad Vision Funds also participated in the investment. Existing shareholders GLP Hidden Hill Capital, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (300750.SZ), Nio Capital and Eastern Bell Capital also followed, Inceptio said Tuesday.

The background: Autonomous-driving trucks are an increasingly crowded field. Compared with passenger cars, trucks are regarded by some as low-hanging fruit in the push to commercialize self-driving vehicles because trucks tend to operate in relatively predictable conditions such as on highways.

San Diego and Beijing-based TuSimple went public on the Nasdaq in April after completing a $1.35 billion initial public offering. An autonomous truck startup partnering with Nvidia and FAW Jiefang completed a $200 million round of funding led by Guotai Junan International, CPE, and Wanxiang International Investment in February.

Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for fast news you can use. To read the full story in Chinese, click here.

Contact reporter Denise Jia (huijuanjia@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com)

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