NIO Capital Updates

 

▌NIO Capital Leads in INGIN's Series C + Financing

Automotive parts company INGIN raised nearly RMB 100 million in Series C+ financing round. The company will use the proceeds to fund its rapid global expansion and develop new intelligent closure technologies. 

 

Since its establishment in 2017, INGIN has been dedicated to the research and development, production, and sales of intelligent automotive systems. These systems include front cabin, side door, back door, and rear wing systems, as well as intelligent control systems. INGIN has supplied millions of mass-produced products that are recognized by both domestic and foreign automakers, and has gained extensive experience in the field of intelligent automotive access products. 

 

▌NIO Capital Honored by China’s Startup-focused Media Cyzone

NIO Capital has been recognized for its investment activities by Cyzone, a Chinese media platform focusing on startups. NIO Capital was honored with several titles including TOP 50 Most Admired Venture Capital Firms in China, TOP 20 Most Admired Venture Capital Firms in Intelligent Manufacturing, TOP 10 Most Admired Venture Capital Firms in Energy & Technology, and ESG Best Practices Award for TOP 50 Venture Capital Firms.

Portfolio Updates

Mobility and Logistics

 

▌Inceptio Technology Leaders Attend Top Tech Events

● Julian Ma, founder and CEO of autonomous driving firm Inceptio Technology attended tech show GITEX Global 2023 in Dubai as a representative of innovative companies. During the thematic forum of “Future Transportation”, Ma shared the commercial breakthroughs and technological progress of the company in the field of autonomous trucking. He also discussed the company’s plans to explore the Middle East market and the opportunities it presents.

 

● Inceptio Technology CFO Yu Min attended the East Tech West 2023, an invite-only technology retreat held by CNBC in Nansha, South China’s Guangdong Province. He discussed how autonomous driving technology could revolutionize the trucking industry and improve logistics efficiency. He also explored the potential of investing in autonomous driving trucks.

 

▌Pony.ai Expands Footprint in Middle East

● Pony.ai, a leading autonomous driving startup, signed a cooperation agreement with Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO). It announced its entry into the Smart and Autonomous Vehicle Industry (SAVI) cluster at Masdar City and won the approval to run autonomous driving tests in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. 

 

● Pony.ai received an investment of $100 million from northwestern Saudi Arabian city NEOM and its investment arm NEOM Investment Fund (NIF). Pony.ai and NEOM also plan to establish a joint venture in the city to provide autonomous driving technology solutions for the region.

 

▌Eacon Boasts Largest Autonomous Trucking Fleet at Coal Mine, Launches New Chassis, and Joins to Establish IEEE Standard

 
● Autonomous mining truck developer Eacon now has more than 200 vehicles in a single mine, the largest of its kind in China. Such trucks have covered more than 3 million kilometers by the end October 2023 at this mine in China. As a leading provider of autonomous mining technology and haulage services, Eacon offers 24/7 autonomous operation at three different sections of the coal mine, with a truck attendance rate of over 95%. Eacon’s extended-range hybrid trucks deployed at the mine can reduce carbon emissions by 16,000 tons per year.

 

● Eacon released its brand-new autonomous transportation solution for open pits “Zhushan” and launched its new energy autonomous by-wire chassis platform “Yushi”. As the first-of-its-kind platform in the industry, Yushi can quickly upgrade from producing manned vehicles to unmanned ones. It adopts the modularized and integrated design to lower the failure rate and improve the reliability.

 

● Eacon participated in the fourth working meeting of the IEEE standard project P3179 (Recommended Practice for Digital Mine Construction). Representatives from Eacon and more than 40 universities and enterprises extensively discussed the business process, framework system and other issues of digital mines. The standard is expected to be published in 2025. 

 

▌Momenta and IM Motors Jointly Build IM AD Intelligent Driving System

Autonomous driving solutions provider Momenta joins hands with IM Motors, an electric vehicle joint venture between Chinese automobile manufacturer SAIC Motor and Chinese technology companies Zhangjiang Hi-Tech and Alibaba Group, to create the IM AD, an intelligent driving system for the latter’s LS6 SUV. The system offers users an intelligent driving experience that is more human-like, thanks to its data-driven AI flywheel effect and closed-loop automation with rapid iteration.

 

▌TrunkTech’s Autonomous Truck Fleet Comes into Service in Ningbo-Zhoushan Port

L4 autonomous trucks developer TrunkTech has put its autonomous container truck fleet (ICT intelligent tractors) into operations at the Yongzhou Container Terminal of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. The fleet now provides 24-hour service. A new batch of 15 autonomous container trucks will also hit the road after intelligent transformation.

 

New Energy

▌Sunman Energy Shines with Lightweight Solar Modules

● Sunman Energy showcased its lightweight solar modules at the International Greentech & Eco Products Exhibition (IGEM) in Malaysia, Smart Energy Forum 2023 in the Czech Republic and Solar & Storage Live 2023 in the UK.

 

● Huaigang Special Steel Co., Ltd. of Jiangsu Shagang Group has successfully put its 30MW distributed photovoltaic power generation project into operation. It is the largest lightweight photovoltaic module project in the world and the first demonstration photovoltaic project in China to install lightweight modules on an arched roof of 42 meters high and 530 meters long. The solar power station will adopt the “self-generation and self-consumption” mode, fully consuming the power it generates. It is expected to generate 30 million kWh of electricity in the first year, reducing CO2 emission by nearly 29,000 tons.

 

▌AlphaESS Begins Fresh Journey with New Global Headquarters

Energy storage solution and service provider AlphaESS successfully held its Global Headquarters Completion Ceremony and International Strategic Partner Conference in Nantong City. Since its establishment in 2012, AlphaESS has made significant strides in the industry. The recent event marks a milestone in the company’s history and symbolizes a new beginning after 11 years of hard work. Today, AlphaESS has over 30 branches and subsidiaries, along with four production bases and four R&D centers worldwide.

 

▌PCG Powers Youran Dairy and Shuanghui Food to Turn Green

● PCG Power, an energy management and service provider, started to work on Phase I of the rooftop distributed photovoltaic power generation project for Youran Dairy in Shouguang, Shandong Province, in October. With an installed capacity of 5.7 MW, the Phase I of the project adopts the 555Wp monocrystalline silicon photovoltaic modules. Upon completion, it is expected to generate 7.14 million kWh of green electricity for Youran Dairy per year. Compared with a coal-fired power plant of the same generation capacity, it will save 2,663 tons of standard coal and cut the CO2 emission by 6,638 tons per year, equivalent to planting 380,000 trees per year.

 

● PCG Power commenced the 4.675MW distributed photovoltaic power generation project for Shenyang Shuanghui Food Co. in Liaoning Province in October. The project uses N-type TOPCON modules and 580Wp bifacial dual glass monocrystalline modules. Once completed, the project is expected to generate 5.69 million kWh of green electricity for Shenyang Shuanghui per year. Compared with a coal-fired power plant of the same generation capacity, it will save 2,276 tons of standard coal and cut the CO2 emission by 5,672 tons per year, equivalent to planting 310,000 trees per year.

 

▌Ruilong Tech Completes Series A+ Financing

 

The company will leverage this financing round to enhance its sales channel development, R&D and internal governance. Founded in 2016, Ruilong Tech is a leading innovator in the recycling of automotive power battery.

 

Frontier Technology

▌Innovusion Enables L4 Autonomous Driving on China's First Smart Highway

LiDAR provider Innovusion’s high-performance Falcon plays a key role in the Suzhou-Taizhou Highway, the first holographic perception smart highway in China that allows vehicles to achieve L4 autonomous driving through its cooperative vehicle-infrastructure system (CVIS). Smart highways use a set of comprehensive, complementary roadside perception units that include cameras, LiDARs, and other perception devices. These units can collect and transmit real-time information on all traffic participants and road conditions in a given section.

 

▌Black Sesame Technologies Facilitates Lan-You Technology to Launch New Product

Semiconductor company Black Sesame Technologies partnered with intelligent vehicle solutions provider Lan-You Technology to release the high-level integrated driving and parking domain controller YDU2.0 Pro. It is the first of its kind to adopt the Huashan No. 2 A1000 chip of Black Sesame Technologies. With both the Navigate On Autopilot (NOA) and Home-zone Parking Assist (HPA) functions, mass production of the controller will start within three years.

 

▌BIBO Achieves Major Milestone in Certification

The global intelligent chassis solution provider BIBO has obtained the ISO 26262: 2018 Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) D certificate issued by SGS, the world's leading testing, inspection and certification company. BIBO is the first ISO 26262 ASIL D certified Chinese company that mass produces the full-stack brake-by-wire products.

 

▌Ambilight Attends First SuperBridge Summit Dubai

Smart glass provider Ambilight attended the First SuperBridge Summit Dubai, to discuss with the world’s leading companies to jointly find feasible solutions, explore business and investment prospects, and promote economic growth through cooperation.

 

▌Standard Robots Participates in Industry Expos and Meets Visitors from SCG Logistics

● Autonomous mobile robot (AMR) manufacturer Standard Robots attended the HUAWEI CONNECT 2023, displaying its scenario-based smart manufacturing at the Pangu Embodies + AI exhibition area.

 

● Standard Robots and its partner, Twinsburg, Ohio-based PEPPERL+FUCHS, a leading developer and manufacturer of electronic sensors and components for the global automation market, took part in the Industrial Transformation ASIA-PACIFIC exhibition in Singapore, displaying applications of AMRs and showcasing the flexible logistics solution that integrates the factory and warehouses.

 

● Standard Robots received visitors from SCG Logistics of Bangkok-based SCG Group at its headquarters in Shenzhen. The adoption of Standard Robots’ AMR has greatly improved SCG Logistics’ operations in terms of goods picking, shipping and logistics, making it the first in Southeast Asia to apply the Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) flexible logistics.