Autonomous vehicle software Oxbotica drives in $140 million

Oxford-based autonomous vehicle software Oxbotica has raised $140 million in a Series C round aimed at supporting the company’s deployment of its operating system in multiple commercial and industrial industries including agriculture, airports, energy, goods delivery, mining, and shared passenger transportation. 

Oxbotica’s $140 million Series C round was provided by Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance Co., Ltd and ENEOS Innovation Partners, with existing shareholders bp ventures, BGF, Halma, Hostplus, Kiko Ventures (IP Group), Ocado Group, Tencent, Venture Science, and ZF, re-upping their commitment with the company. 

According to Oxbotica, this announcement is just a first, as the company anticipates the participation of additional investors before final close in upcoming months. Since 2014, the company has raised approximately $225 million.

Through its combination of Oxbotica Driver, Oxbotica Cloud, and Oxbotica MetaDriver product offerings, the company delivers what it’s termed Universal Autonomy, a trio that provides “the ability of any vehicle, of any size, in any location to operate autonomously, safely, and sustainably.” 

These applications span from haul trucks to forklifts to specialised fleets for industry to passenger shuttles, autonomous delivery pods, and beyond for people and goods transportation.

“Oxbotica was founded eight years ago on the vision of Universal Autonomy, providing safe and sustainable autonomy that is independent of workplace and vehicle type,” says Oxbotica CTO Paul Newman. “With the greatest engineering talent and experience, using the best of AI, robotics, and the metaverse, we are delivering on that promise to create value for our customers, our communities, and our planet.”

The company counts Ocado Group amongst its client base, partnering to collaborate on autonomous goods delivery to fulfill customer orders, as well as Applied EV, in which the company demonstrated Europe’s first zero-occupancy trial on a publicly accessible road in May 2022. Additional clients include bp, NEVS, ZF, and Wenco International Mining Systems.

On the investment, bp ventures Managing Partner Erin Hollock commented, “Oxbotica really sets itself apart from its competitors thanks to its ambitious vision to unlock Universal Autonomy. We are excited to combine Oxbotica’s world-class AI and robotic techniques with our own pioneering expertise in the telematics insurance arena. This will leave us well placed to develop innovative insurance products and services which will create a safer, greener, and more secure society for everyone.”