Nvidia eyes $500M investment into self-driving tech startup Wayve

Investment Commitment - Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced a £2 billion ($2.6 billion) investment to enhance the AI startup ecosystem in the UK [1] - The investment will include contributions from venture-capital investors such as Accel, Air Street Capital, Balderton, Hoxton Ventures, and Phoenix Court [3] Wayve's Strategic Investment - Wayve has signed a letter of intent with Nvidia for a potential $500 million strategic investment in its next funding round [2] - Nvidia previously participated in Wayve's $1.05 billion Series C funding round that closed in May 2024 [2] Wayve's Technology and Development - Wayve utilizes a self-learning approach for its automated driving system, which does not rely on high-definition maps [3][6] - The company plans to sell its "Embodied AI" technology to automakers and tech companies [4] - Wayve's generation 2 self-driving platform is integrated into Ford Mach E test vehicles and uses Nvidia GPUs [8] - The newly unveiled generation 3 platform employs Nvidia Drive AGX Thor, enabling advanced driving assistance systems and Level 4 driverless features [8] Relationship with Nvidia - Wayve has maintained a close development relationship with Nvidia since 2018, allowing its software to run on existing OEM vehicle chips [7] - Nvidia's commitment to Wayve is underscored by Huang's statement about the potential of Wayve becoming a trillion-dollar company [9]