Feb 13, 2019

Autonomous truck startup TuSimple raises $95 million

Dan Primack

TuSimple, a Tucson, Ariz.-based self-driving truck startup, raised $95 million in Series D funding at a pre-money valuation of $1 billion led by China's Sina Corp.

Why it matters: Because the widespread adoption of autonomous trucks could move significantly faster than that of autonomous cars (even ride-hail), due to the high costs and human safety requirements (read: sleep) of long-haul trucking.

No, this is not the same as Rivian, which Amazon and GM reportedly may invest in. That's self-driving pickup trucks. It's closer to Ike, which last week raised $52 million.

  • The bottom line: "Today, TuSimple is taking three to five fully autonomous trips per day for customers on three different routes in Arizona.... Now, it’s ready to ramp up further ... [with] plans to expand its daily 'fully-autonomous' commercial deliveries to Texas. The company also plans to use this influx of capital to fund what it describes as 'critical joint production programs' with OEM, Tier 1 suppliers and sensors partners." — Kirsten Korosec, TechCrunch

Go deeper: How AVs could the solve truck driver shortage

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Mike Allen

Ivanka Trump plans focus on coronavirus recovery for small businesses

Ivanka Trump speaks at yesterday's White House videoconference with bank and credit card executives. Photo: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

Ivanka Trump personally lobbied top bank executives to line up the $1.5 billion in commitments to small business that were announced yesterday at a videoconference among the bank executives and President Trump — stoking competitive juices among the execs to drive up their commitments.

The state of play: Ivanka, who has had workforce development in her portfolio going back to 2017, plans an increasing emphasis on small businesses in the weeks ahead as they navigate the rescue bill’s Payroll Protection Program, sources tell me.

Go deeperArrow2 hours ago - Politics & Policy
Kim Hart

Public transit's death spiral

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Public transit systems across the country are experiencing a painful trifecta: Ridership has collapsed, funding streams are squeezed, and mass transit won't bounce back from the pandemic nearly as fast as other modes of transportation.

Why it matters: Transit agencies could see an annual shortfall of as much as $38 billion due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to TransitCenter. At the same time, they're more important than ever, with more than 36% of essential workers relying on public transportation to get to work.

Go deeperArrow2 hours ago - Health
Axios

World coronavirus updates: London mayor says U.K. nowhere near lockdown lifting

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern offered hope in the fight against the novel coronavirus, saying she believes New Zealand has "turned a corner" after two weeks of strict lockdown measures. But London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said the U.K. is "nowhere near" lifting restrictions.

The big picture: COVID-19 has killed over 82,000 people and infected 1.4 million others globally as of early Wednesday, per Johns Hopkins data. Global recoveries have surpassed 301,000. Spain has reported the most cases outside the U.S. (more than 141,000) and Italy the most deaths (over 17,000). Half the planet's population is on lockdown.

Go deeperArrowUpdated 2 hours ago - Health