Autonomous Vehicle Startup Kodiak Robotics Raises $40M For Self-Driving Truck Tech

Autonomous vehicle startup Kodiak Robotics announced that it raised $40 million in a Series A financing round. The company, based in Mountain View, California, was founded by Israeli Paz Eshel, a former venture capitalist, and American Don Burnette, a co-founder of self-driving trucking company Otto and former software technical lead at Uber.

The round was led by global investment firm Battery Ventures. CRV, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Tusk Ventures also participated. The startup will use the funds for product development and expansion of the team, according to a company statement.

The co-founders established Kodiak Robotics in 2018 to “bring new technologies to the long-haul trucking market” and ” to alleviate the current strain on the freight market through self-driving technology.”

“This financing, coming just three months after founding Kodiak Robotics, is a huge validation for our vision,” Burnette said. “We believe self-driving trucks will likely be the first autonomous vehicles to support a viable business model, and we are proud to have the support of such high-profile investors to help us execute on our plan.”

“Autonomous driving is likely one of the most major technology shifts of the last 100 years,” said Battery’s Itzik Parnafes. “We have been researching this trend for several years and feel confident we are backing an experienced, savvy team that can capitalize on the opportunity in a unique way.”