DeepRoute.ai secures $100 million in C1 funding round

Beijing (Gasgoo)- On November 5, 2024, autonomous driving tech company DeepRoute.ai announced the completion of its C1 strategic funding round, which raised for the company $100 million. The new round was backed exclusively by a leading domestic automaker.

The funding will be directed toward enhancing DeepRoute.ai’s mass production projects within China, expanding its overseas footprint, and supporting research into commercial Robotaxi operations and Vision-Language-Action (VLA) model development.

As a long-standing partner of NVIDIA, DeepRoute.ai is among the first companies in China to access NVIDIA’s Thor chip, which will power its development of the VLA model. Expected to launch in 2025, the VLA model aims to advance autonomous driving by enabling systems to comprehend complex interactions, interpret semantic cues, and conduct logical reasoning within traffic scenarios.

DeepRoute.ai has already successfully deployed its end-to-end smart driving model on mass-produced vehicles and is collaborating with major automakers to integrate its system across more than ten vehicle models. By the end of this year, three models equipped with DeepRoute.ai’s intelligent driving technology are expected to reach the consumer market. The company also plans to leverage its domestic experience to support the growth of autonomous solutions for automakers overseas.

In addition, DeepRoute.ai is pioneering a novel commercial approach for Robotaxi services. Utilizing mass-produced vehicles with its end-to-end model, these Robotaxis are less restricted by operational zones, offering reduced time and economic costs. This strategic advantage aims to accelerate the mainstream deployment of Robotaxis.