Einride AB, which has been developing electric and autonomous trucks, announced today that it has raised $110 million in Series B funding. The Stockholom, Sweden-based company said it will use its latest financing to scale up deployments with its customer base in Europe and the U.S.
“We are proud to be backed by some of the world's most notable investors as they support our mission of becoming the leading provider of freight transport-as-a-service,” stated Robert Falck, CEO of Einride. “Their network, reach, and experience will be invaluable as we further accelerate our strong momentum as the leader in autonomous and electric freight transportation and as we expand into new markets. Einride is dedicated to transforming road freight transport as we know it, making it more cost-efficient, safe, and sustainable.”
Falck, Linnéa Kornehed, and Filip Lilj founded Einride in 2016. The company claimed that its Pod was the world’s first autonomous, all-electric freight vehicle to operate on a commercial route on a public road. In October 2020, the Pod set a speed record at the Top Gear track in the U.K.
Einride focuses on sustainability
The global market for freight trucking reached $4.2 trillion in the year 2020 and is projected to reach $5.5 trillion by 2027, according to Global Industry Analysts Inc. In 2020, the U.S. road freight market reached an estimated $1.1 trillion. This, coupled with the fact that road freight accounts for 7% of global CO2 emissions, has resulted in an overwhelming demand for long-term sustainable transport solutions.
Einride said it operates with its customers the largest fleet of heavy electric trucks in Europe. The company's customers include Coca-Cola, Oatly, Lidl, and Electrolux. It also recently signed an agreement to test its vehicles between bearing maker SKF's factories in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Einride also claimed that it has helped reduce customer CO2 emissions by 94% compared with driving with diesel, including embodied emissions.
In addition to its business-to-business transportation modules, Einride offers the Einride Mobility Platform, a cloud-native transport execution system that it said enables customers to use real-time information and data-driven insights to implement sustainable, cost-efficient, and high-performing transport logistics.
Investors look to the future of freight
Einride previously raised $25 million in its Series A round in October 2019, and it was reportedly seeking $75 million in March 2021. New investors in its Series B round included Temasek, Soros Fund Management LLC, Northzone, Maersk Growth, and Build Capital. Existing investors EQT Ventures, Plum Alley Investments, Norrsken VC, Ericsson and NordicNinja VC also participated.
“With our global reach and expertise, we want to act as a catalyst for the next generation of logistics power players, as an investor and as a partner,” said Jeppe Høier, Partner at Maersk Growth. “We look forward to being part of Einride’s mission to electrify and decarbonize inland transport globally.”
“The road freight market is at an inflection point, with consumer demand and regulation pushing shippers to look for sustainable alternatives,” said Jessica Schultz, general partner at Northzone.
“Einride has one of the most ambitious teams I've met as a VC [venture capitalist]. What’s more, they have a clear and important mission, drastically lowering global freight emissions,” said Ted Persson, partner at EQT Ventures. “Their impressive list of customers and partners positions Einride uniquely in the marketplace.”
“The rapid growth of Einride has energized the entire industry,” said Avantika Daing, managing director and partner at Plum Alley Investments. “As early pioneers, we believe in Einride’s ability to become a global solution to sustainable and cost-competitive road freight transport.”
Einride is just the latest autonomous truck developer to raise significant funding. In March, Plus (formerly Plus.ai) said it had raised $220 million, and TuSimple announced last month that it was preparing for a $1.1 billion initial public offering (IPO).
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