Mobileye CEO Leads $750M Investment In Chinese EV

Amnon Shashua, CEO of autonomous driving tech company Mobileye, has led a $750 million financing round for a Chinese EV (electric vehicle) manufacturer.

He did not disclose the amount that was invested, but sources say it could be tens of millions of dollars.

Zeekr, the company he invested in, manufactures electric vehicles and is now valued at $13 billion. 

It was established by Geely, formally known as Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, in 2021 to tap into increasing Chinese demand for EVs. 

Zeekr began deliveries of its flagship vehicle Zeekr 001 in October 2021, and has already delivered over 80,000 vehicles to date. 

The company said in a statement that the proceeds will be used to support technology research, as well as its global expansion. 

Other investors included Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL), Yuexiu Industrial Fund, Tongshang Fund and Xin’an Intelligent Manufacturing Fund.

Mobileye was founded in Jerusalem by Shashua and Ziv Aviram in 1999, developing autonomous driving technologies and advanced driver-assistance systems.

Intel, the US semiconductor chip giant, paid $15.3 billion for the automotive startup in 2017. It was, at the time, Israel’s largest ever buyout.

Last month, Mobileye announced it had received permission to pilot its robotaxis in Germany, although fully driverless operation will require further approvals.