Autonomous A2Z (CEO Jihyung Han, hereinafter A2Z) announced on the 12th that it has successfully completed a pre-IPO investment of 40.5 billion won.
This round of funding included existing investors DS Investment Partners, Envester, KB Investment, KB Securities, and Hana Securities, with new investors Daesung Venture Investment, Suin Investment Capital, and E&Venture Partners joining. This brings A2G's cumulative investment to 122.5 billion won, the largest among domestic autonomous driving companies.
The pre-IPO investment was made in preparation for an IPO planned for later this year, to proactively respond to the rapidly changing physical AI-based autonomous driving market, and to expand the foundation for commercialization. The investment will be used for overall business operations, including securing inventory necessary for domestic and international expansion, investing in infrastructure for end-to-end autonomous driving technology development, and expanding human resources.
A2Z is currently preparing to participate in a large-scale autonomous driving demonstration project led by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and plans to use the investment funds to strengthen preparations for demonstration-based technologies, such as securing sensors, controllers, and parts necessary for vehicle manufacturing.
Investments are also underway overseas. In Singapore, the company is operating autonomous shuttle buses in the city center in partnership with the super app Grab, and is applying its proprietary LiDAR infrastructure (LIS) to the local transportation system. In the UAE, the company is pursuing business contracts based on export approval from the Korean government, and in Japan, it is conducting robotaxi demonstrations. A2Z plans to gradually introduce its technology in accordance with the legal and institutional environments of each country and expand commercialization.
In terms of technology development, we are currently developing hybrid E2E autonomous driving technology that integrates AI with existing rule-based autonomous driving. To achieve this, we are conducting parallel work on learning real-world driving data, improving software, and enhancing safety and stability for the commercialization of Level 4 fully unmanned autonomous driving.
CEO Han Ji-hyung said, “The pre-IPO investment is a strategic decision to strengthen the execution of major domestic and international projects,” and added, “Through the IPO, we will proceed with mass production of Level 4 autonomous vehicles and build a global data ecosystem, thereby spreading Korean autonomous driving technology around the world.”
Kim Hee-joong, deputy director of DS Investment Partners, who led this investment, said, “A2Z is one of the few autonomous driving companies that possess both automotive and AI technology, and its technological prowess and business viability have been verified by global SIs and governments.” He added, “This investment has laid the foundation for growth into a top-tier company in the global autonomous driving market.”
In the domestic and international autonomous driving markets, investment is expanding, focusing on companies with technological prowess and proven experience, and competition for commercialization and overseas expansion is intensifying.
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