Uber secures $1 billion funding for its self-driving unit

Leading transportation network company, Uber recently got an investment of $1 billion from the Japan-based SoftBank’s Vision Fund, car maker Toyota, and Denso, an automative component supplier. A news article posted in The Wall Street Journal talked about Uber securing funding for its autonomous division, called Uber Advanced Technologies Group, or UberATG.

Making an official announcement, Dara Khosrowshahi, the CEO of Uber, tweeted the same with a picture of the chief executive alongside executives from SoftBank, Toyota, and Denso.

As per the company’s press release, its self-driving unit is valued at $7.25 billion by the capital injection. Its IPO is also likely to raise around $10 billion for the company, with its value rising to around $100 billion.

According to the terms of the investment, Toyota and Denso are making a contribution of $667 million collectively, while SoftBank’s Vision Fund is contributing $333 million. Considering Uber’s financial record, these deals come as no surprise. Last year, the company got an investment of $500 million from Toyota for strengthening its self-driving efforts, including putting a retrofitted fleet of Toyota Sienna’s on the road to test Uber’s autonomous technology and eventually deploy it commercially as soon as 2021.

“This investment and our strong partnership with the Toyota Group are a testament to the incredible work of our ATG team to date, and the exciting future ahead for this important project, alongside great partners,” Khosrowshahi said in a statement.

“The development of automated driving technology will transform transportation as we know it, making our streets safer and our cities more livable. Today’s announcement, along with our ongoing OEM and supplier relationships, will help maintain Uber’s position at the forefront of that transformation,” he added.