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Before we bounce into the information, I needed to steer you towards a current TechCrunch Equity podcast episode with Waabi co-founder and CEO Raquel Urtasun.
A little bit chook
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Deals!
The Rivian-Volkswagen Group three way partnership has been formally finalized. Before the events signed on the dotted line, it bought about 16% greater. The deal will now inject as much as $5.eight billion into Rivian’s coffers with $1 billion already delivered through a convertible notice.
We don’t know the entire particular phrases, however it’s price noting that this will likely be an impartial firm co-led by Rivian’s head of software program Wassym Bensaid and Volkswagen Group’s chief technical engineer, Carsten Helbing. The group, which will likely be closely loaded with Rivian engineers, will likely be primarily based in Palo Alto, California. It will finally arrange three extra websites in North America and Europe.
A lingering query — and one requested by a number of media (together with moi) throughout a press convention — is what occurs to VW’s struggling software program arm, Cariad? VW Group CEO Oliver Blume claims that Cariad will nonetheless play a “central role.” We’ll see.
Meanwhile, Rivian remains to be combating a provider drawback that curbed manufacturing and reduce into income. In its Q3 earnings, Rivian reported $874 million of income, greater than 34% decrease than the identical interval final 12 months. But wanting on the hole between manufacturing (13,157) and deliveries (10,018) means that demand can be a difficulty.
That VW cash is wanting fairly candy proper now.
Other offers that bought my consideration …
Just Eat Takeaway, the Netherlands-based meals supply firm, is promoting its U.S. enterprise Grubhub to New York-based Wonder Group in a deal valued at $650 million. That’s 91% lower than the $7.three billion Just Eat Takeaway paid for the corporate simply 4 years in the past.
Silicon Valley battery startup Lyten is buying manufacturing property from Northvolt, the Swedish battery producer that has struggled in current months and is brief on capital. The corporations didn’t disclose monetary phrases however did say Northvolt will promote manufacturing gear it inherited in its 2021 acquisition of Cuberg, one other battery startup.
NASA gave out 5 analysis awards price $11.5 million to corporations engaged on sustainable plane ideas, together with JetZero.
Vatn Systems, a Portsmouth, Rhode Island-based firm growing underwater autonomous vessels, raised $13 million in a seed spherical led by DYNE Ventures and with participation from Lockheed Martin Ventures, RTX Ventures, In-Q-Tel, and others. The spherical brings the startup’s complete funding to $16.5 million.
Vecna Robotics, a warehouse robotics startup that developed autonomous forklifts and different pallet movers, has raised $14.5 million. But the elevate wasn’t precisely what bought my consideration; it was the appointment of Karl Iagnemma, the previous president and CEO of Motional. Iagnemma has been within the AV world for a few a long time now, largely in pursuit of commercializing autonomous autos (i.e., robotaxis). This new place places him on the helm of a startup (wherein he was an early investor, btw) that already has industrial prospects.
Notable reads and different tidbits
Autonomous autos
Monarch Tractor, the autonomous electrical tractor startup, has laid off staff as a part of a restructuring that can see it prioritize non-agricultural prospects, license its autonomous expertise, and enhance gross sales of its AI-powered farm administration software program….
