Nuro brings in $106M to bolster licensing-driven business model

Nuro offers Driver and Driver Assist, each combining automotive-grade hardware with self-driving software. | Source: Nuro

Nuro Inc. today announced that it has raised $106 million so far in its ongoing Series E round, which values the company at $6 billion. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company said the funding demonstrates investor confidence in its autonomy platform and licensing-driven business model.

“We’re excited to see strong investor enthusiasm for our Series E,” stated Jiajun Zhu, co-founder and CEO of Nuro. “Our technology, years of experience with driver-out Level 4 deployments, and focus on licensing uniquely position us to help automakers, mobility platforms, and commercial fleets accelerate their autonomy roadmaps.”

The company offers two flagship products to automotive manufacturers, suppliers, and mobility companies: the SAE Level 4 Nuro Driver and “Level 2++” Nuro Driver Assist. It said each combines automotive-grade hardware with “AI-first” self-driving software.

By licensing its vehicle-agnostic, cost-effective system, the company claimed that it enables integration across commercial fleets, robotaxis, and personal vehicles.

With more than eight years of development and four years of real-world deployments in California and Texas, Nuro said it is one of the few companies to have successfully deployed driverless technology at a city scale with no safety driver.

In September 2024, the company expanded its business model to include licensing Nuro Driver to automotive OEMs. As part of the new licensing model, it also announced the Nuro AI Platform, which consists of scalable and performant developer tools to support artificial intelligence development and validation for the Nuro Driver.

In November 2024, Nuro expanded its driverless capabilities using zero-occupant vehicles with its AI-powered self-driving system. The company expanded deployments in Mountain View and Palo Alto, Calif., by 83%, and its deployment in Houston by 70%, in terms of linear miles.

While Waymo has dominated recent autonomous driving headlines, Nuro gained a lot of traction in 2020 when it became the first U.S. autonomous vehicle developer to be granted exemptions by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for testing on public roads without needing controls for human operators. Later that year, the company received a second permit to test the R2 on certain public roads in sections of nine cities within Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.

Since then, it has worked with Domino’s, Walmart, FedEx, 7-Eleven, Kroger, and Uber Eats for various delivery activities.

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Nuro funding to support scaling, commercial partnerships

The company said its Series E round brings its total funding to $2.2 billion to date. It plans to use the financing for its next phase of growth—scaling its AI-based technology platform and advancing commercial partnerships.

The round included participation from new and returning investors, as well as strategic partners. Investors include funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., Fidelity Management & Research Co., Tiger Global Management, Greylock Partners, and XN LP. Details about participating strategic investors will be included in an upcoming partnership announcement.

The company said it will share details on additional Series E participants in the coming weeks.

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