Woven Capital, the investment arm of Toyota’s innovation-focused subsidiary Woven Planet, has announced an investment into Silicon Valley-based autonomous delivery vehicle company Nuro. This kicks off the new $800 million strategic fund, which will invest in growth-stage technology companies that could one day develop into partners or acquisitions to further a mission of building the future of safe mobility, according to George Kellerman, Woven Capital’s head of investments and acquisitions.
Woven Capital’s contribution was part of Nuro’s $500 million Series C funding round, which was announced last November. Chipotle also invested in the round, which also included funds managed by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., with participation from new investors Fidelity Management & Research Company, LLC and Baillie Gifford. The specific amounts invested by each stakeholder were not disclosed.
Toyota announced the $800 million investment pool in September 2020, and Woven Capital was officially formed in January 2021, with the aim of investing in technologies including autonomous mobility, machine learning, artificial intelligence, automation, connectivity and data and analytics.
“Nuro was a good jumping off point, because a lot of the work that we’re doing is really focused on developing autonomous passenger vehicles, so this is a way for us to learn and advance through a partner that is laser-focused on local goods delivery,” Kellerman told TechCrunch. “There’s a lot of opportunity to learn from them, and potentially over time, to collaborate and help them expand globally.”
Nuro’s fleet of cargo-only self-driving vehicles has already been approved by California’s Department of Motor Vehicles to test on public roads, delivering goods from partners like Krogers, Domino’s, Walmart and CVS. The coronavirus pandemic accelerated the need for goods delivery, giving Nuro an opportunity to become a leader in this space. Woven Capital saw an opportunity to help accelerate and strengthen that leadership position, while also setting up a strategic knowledge sharing arrangement between the two.
“[Woven Capital] has assembled a great team with ambitious goals for the future, and we share a common objective of transforming the way people live and move to make life better,” said Nuro co-founder and president Dave Ferguson in a statement. “We’ll use this new capital, and the support of one of the largest automotive companies in the world, to continue growing our team and building a great autonomous delivery product.”
Toyota Woven City concept render.
Toyota Woven City concept render. Image Credits: Toyota
Automation will be a big part of Woven Capital’s portfolio, which exists to support all of parent Woven Planet’s activities, including Woven City, a testing ground for new technologies set in an interconnected smart city prototype. In February, Toyota broke ground at the Higashi-Fuji site in Susono City, Japan, at the base of Mount Fuji.
“When we think about Woven City, we think about autonomous mobility and automation more broadly,” said Kellerman. “To facilitate that, you’re going to need artificial intelligence, machine learning, data and analytics, connectivity. So we’re going to be building a portfolio that has investments in all those areas.”
A growing trend in the mobility industry is to view mobility not just as the movement of people and goods, but as the movement of information and data. Woven Planet recognizes this and is taking a software-first approach, particularly when it comes to automobiles. This means that instead of the historical auto industry approach of designing the hardware first, and then fitting in the software to operate that vehicle, you start with the software and build hardware around it.
Building off a software-first architecture provides a lot flexibility for future innovation. If the hardware changes, you don’t have to rewrite the code, you could just add in another application. Kellerman said all the software Woven Planet is developing as a company should be usable in as many applications as possible.
Having really strong, integrated software is also the logical next step for connected mobility, and it opens up doors for rethinking what a vehicle has the potential to transport. A Nuro vehicle isn’t just a vehicle for whatever groceries it’s delivering, but it’s also a vehicle for all the information it picks up along the way and transmits back to the cloud, such as traffic flows and weather patterns. The value, therefore, is less in the A to B utility, and more in the interchange of information.
Some of the information collected by Nuro that could be immediately useful to Woven City is that related to street safety. Nuro’s vehicles don’t carry passengers, so the design features focus more on the safety of people outside of the vehicle, the aggregate data of which could be useful in human-centered city planning.
In the end, Woven Capital’s long-term view is always a potential funnel to future mergers and acquisitions, said Kellerman.
“Toyota is not historically a very acquisitive company, but within Woven Planet we’re building a corporate development team with an eye to how we can accelerate the vision and mission of Woven Planet through strategic acquisitions, as well,” said Kellerman.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in technology, financial and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also pushed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 171.41 points at 23,298.39.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 278.37 points at 41,369.79. The S&P 500 index was up 38.17 points at 5,630.35, while the Nasdaq composite was up 177.15 points at 17,733.18.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.19 cents US compared with 74.23 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up US$1.75 at US$76.27 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.10 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$18.70 at US$2,556.50 an ounce and the December copper contract was down less than a penny at US$4.22 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.
The crypto market has recently experienced a significant downturn, mirroring broader risk asset sell-offs. Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 24%, reaching $53,000, while Ethereum plummeted nearly a third to $2,340. Major altcoins also suffered, with Cardano down 27.7%, Solana 36.2%, Dogecoin 34.6%, XRP 23.1%, Shiba Inu 30.1%, and BNB 25.7%.
The severe downturn in the crypto market appears to be part of a broader flight to safety, triggered by disappointing economic data. A worse-than-expected unemployment report on Friday marked the beginning of a technical recession, as defined by the Sahm Rule. This rule identifies a recession when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least half a percentage point from its lowest point in the past year.
Friday’s figures met this threshold, signaling an abrupt economic downshift. Consequently, investors sought safer assets, leading to declines in major stock indices: the S&P 500 dropped 2%, the Nasdaq 2.5%, and the Dow 1.5%. This trend continued into Monday with further sell-offs overseas.
The crypto market’s rapid decline raises questions about its role as either a speculative asset or a hedge against inflation and recession. Despite hopes that crypto could act as a risk hedge, the recent crash suggests it remains a speculative investment.
Since the downturn, the crypto market has seen its largest three-day sell-off in nearly a year, losing over $500 billion in market value. According to CoinGlass data, this bloodbath wiped out more than $1 billion in leveraged positions within the last 24 hours, including $365 million in Bitcoin and $348 million in Ether.
Khushboo Khullar of Lightning Ventures, speaking to Bloomberg, argued that the crypto sell-off is part of a broader liquidity panic as traders rush to cover margin calls. Khullar views this as a temporary sell-off, presenting a potential buying opportunity.
Josh Gilbert, an eToro market analyst, supports Khullar’s perspective, suggesting that the expected Federal Reserve rate cuts could benefit crypto assets. “Crypto assets have sold off, but many investors will see an opportunity. We see Federal Reserve rate cuts, which are now likely to come sharper than expected, as hugely positive for crypto assets,” Gilbert told Coindesk.
Despite the recent volatility, crypto continues to make strides toward mainstream acceptance. Notably, Morgan Stanley will allow its advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs starting Wednesday. This follows more than half a year after the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF. The investment bank will enable over 15,000 of its financial advisors to sell BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC. This move is seen as a significant step toward the “mainstreamization” of crypto, given the lengthy regulatory and company processes in major investment banks.
The recent crypto market downturn highlights its volatility and the broader economic concerns affecting all risk assets. While some analysts see the current situation as a temporary sell-off and a buying opportunity, others caution against the speculative nature of crypto. As the market evolves, its role as a mainstream alternative asset continues to grow, marked by increasing institutional acceptance and new investment opportunities.
