3 6 Ke·2026-01-30 00:19Core Insights - Waabi, an autonomous driving startup, has announced a $1 billion financing round, consisting of a $750 million Series C led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, along with an additional $250 million commitment from Uber [3][13] - Following this financing, Waabi has entered into an exclusive agreement with Uber to deploy 25,000 RoboTaxis powered by Waabi Driver on the Uber platform, although a specific timeline for deployment has not been provided [3][8] Financing Details - The financing round includes $750 million from Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, and an additional $250 million from Uber, totaling $1 billion [3][13] - Waabi's cumulative funding has reached approximately $1.284 billion, with a target valuation of $3 billion post-Series C [13] - Previous funding rounds include $83.5 million in 2021 and $200 million in 2024, with notable investors such as NVIDIA, Volvo, and Porsche participating [11][13] Business Operations - Waabi's primary operations are based in Texas, with logistics centers in cities like Toronto, San Francisco, Phoenix, and Pittsburgh, and it is conducting commercial trials with human safety drivers [4][8] - The company has expanded its transportation routes across the U.S., covering both coasts and central regions [4] Technology and Innovation - Waabi follows a "factory-integrated" approach in hardware development, collaborating with Volvo to integrate Waabi Driver into Volvo VNL Autonomous models [6][8] - The company emphasizes a unified technology stack for both trucks and passenger vehicles, utilizing a high-fidelity neural simulator called "Waabi World" to create digital twins for real-time sensor simulation [6][8] Leadership and Vision - Waabi was founded in 2021 by Raquel Urtasun, a former chief scientist at Uber ATG, who combines academic and industrial experience in autonomous driving [14][16] - Urtasun focuses on a technology path that is verifiable, explainable, and scalable, aiming for a faster commercialization pace [16] Market Context - The significant investment in Waabi reflects the ongoing interest in the autonomous heavy-duty trucking sector, with major players like NVIDIA and Volvo accelerating resource concentration in companies with high-fidelity simulation capabilities [17] - The current financing trend indicates a competitive landscape for achieving commercial viability in autonomous freight logistics [17]