Wayve, a UK-based startup, has successfully concluded a Series C funding round led by Softbank Group, raising $1.05 billion. This lesser-known company is focused on developing a self-learning autonomous driving system that differs from traditional rule-based systems. This funding round ranks among the top 20 AI investment rounds globally and is the largest in the UK.
During the initial stages, Wayve received funding from Yann LeCunn, the AI head of Meta. However, in the recent funding round, Nvidia also contributed, along with Wayve’s existing investor, Microsoft.
Wayve, founded in 2017 in Cambridge, secured $20 million in a series A funding round in 2019, led by Eclipse Ventures. Eclipse Ventures also led the firm’s series B round, which raised $200 million in January 2022.
The startup intends to utilize this newly acquired capital to further develop its products, including an assisted driving system called “eyes on” and a fully autonomous driving system named “eyes off.” Additionally, the funding will support the development of other AI-assisted automotive applications. Wayve also has plans to expand its operations globally.
Wayve’s self-driving tests have taken place on the narrow lanes of Cambridge using a two-seater Renault Twizy, an electric car. While self-driving system development typically occurs in bustling US cities like New York and Pittsburgh, Wayve has chosen a different approach. The company has trained its autonomous driving models using delivery vehicles from companies like UK grocery delivery company Ocado, in which Wayve has also invested $13.6 million.
Wayve aims to sell its autonomous driving system to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the automotive industry. The company’s approach to self-driving is similar to that of Tesla, as it allows Wayve to gather more data for training its system compared to Tesla, which relies solely on its own vehicles. However, Wayve has not yet disclosed any specific partners.
Not limited to cars, Wayve refers to its product as “embodied AI.” It does not depend on specific hardware or maps and plans to provide its system to both car manufacturers and robotic companies. This approach will enable the platform to learn from human behavior in a wide range of real-world scenarios.
Wayve has promised that its models will offer language-responsive interfaces for co-piloting and personalized driving styles known as GAIA and LINGO, which are generative multi-models.
Alex Kendall, co-founder and CEO of Wayve, explained that the company began its journey seven years ago with the goal of developing embodied AI systems. He stated that they have been working tirelessly on this technology, and it only started working effectively last year, according to TechCrunch.
Kendall sees the recent funding round as validation of their work and approach to the technology. He believes it will provide them with the opportunity to transform their ideas into a practical product that can be made available to the general public.
In terms of Wayve’s aspirations for robotic applications, Kendall mentioned that they aim to create a platform that can be utilized by both car manufacturers and robotic companies. This will allow the system to learn from human behavior in various real-world scenarios.
Kentao Matsui, a managing partner at Softbank Investment Advisers and a member of Wayve’s board, expressed his belief that this technology has the potential to revolutionize mobility and significantly reduce traffic accidents, possibly by as much as 99%.
