Nov 15, 2024 - Business

Pony AI preps IPO below its last private round price

Dan Primack

Illustration of top down car on dollar skid marks — Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Chinese robotaxi operator Pony AI has set its U.S. IPO terms to 15 million shares being offered at between $11 and $13.

Why it matters: This is the first ZIRP unicorn in quite some time to prep a float at below its last private market prices, apparently deciding it's better to take its medicine now than to eventually die of thirst.

It would raise $180 million and have a fully diluted market value of $4.6 billion, were it to price in the middle, and plans to list on the Nasdaq.
Pony AI previously raised around $1.2 billion in venture funding, including in 2022 and 2023 at an $8.5 billion valuation.

By the numbers: The company reports a $209 million net loss on $100 million in revenue for the first half of 2024, with $335 million of cash on hand as of June 30.

Backers include Toyota (13.4% pre-IPO stake), HongShan (10.2%), Ontario Teachers' (6.8%), IDG (5.8%), and 5Y Capital (5.7%), Fidelity, and Saudi Arabia's NEOM Investment Fund.

Go deeper, via TechCrunch: "Pony operates a fleet of 190 'robotrucks' in Beijing and Guangzhou and more than 250 robotaxis in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai. The company told TechCrunch it can charge for robotaxi fares in all four cities and is fully driverless in Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen."

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Pony AI preps IPO below its last private round price

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