Israeli smart car co Autotalks raises $30m
The Israeli company's V2V communications will be deployed in US in new vehicles from 2019 following design wins with leading Tier-1s and OEMs.
Israeli V2X (Vehicle to Everything) communication solutions startup Autotalks has completed a $30 million Series D financing round. The new funding round includes the company's existing investors: Magma Venture Capital, Gemini Israel Fund, Amiti Fund, Mitsui & Co. Global Investment, Liberty Ventures and Delek Motors, as well as new financial investors: Israeli institutions, Fraser McCombs Ventures, Vintage Investment Partners and Samsung Catalyst Fund. The proceeds will be used to expand the company's worldwide operations and accelerate deployment of technologies for safer and smarter autonomous vehicles.
The new investment comes as USDOT (US Department of Transportation) issued NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rulemaking) that, in an effort to increase road safety, will mandate DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication) based V2V in all new light vehicles sold in the US by 2023. To meet this target, deployments will start in 2019. Autotalks' products are the most advanced chipsets addressing this new upcoming regulation, in terms of communication performance, cyber security, integration level, and many other competitive features. Autotalks already ramped up its production capabilities and has been selected by several leading car manufacturers to supply their V2V solution.
Autotalks CEO Hagai Zyss said, “We are very pleased with the completion of this financing round, supported by such strong syndicate. It demonstrates clear vote of confidence in Autotalks’ ability to execute and gain a leading market share. Our mission to equip vehicles with such lifesaving technology is now being adopted by the regulators and leading car manufacturers. I believe our chipsets will soon be part of most new vehicles worldwide.”
