BGF has announced the investment of £6 million in Oxford-headquartered Oxbotica – a global leader in autonomous vehicle software as part of a $47 million funding round.
The funding will accelerate Oxbotica’s commercial deployment of its world-class autonomy software platform across multiple industries and key markets. The news is an endorsement of Oxbotica's go-to-market strategy, deploying their autonomy software in industrial use cases in advance of urban passenger transportation applications.
The investment is global, with additional backing from a consortium of investors, including bp ventures, Halma, HostPlus, IP Group, Tencent, Venture SCIENCE, and funds advised by Doxa Partners. With financial and strategic investors in Australia, China, the UK and the USA, Oxbotica is placed at the centre of a global autonomy ecosystem.
Osborne Clarke advised BGF on the transaction with a team led by corporate partner Rob Wood and associate director Vicky Dudding.
Oxbotica was founded in 2014 by Oxford University professors, Paul Newman and Ingmar Posner. Since then, the company has grown from a UK robotics start-up to one of the world’s leading autonomy companies.
Oxbotica’s product is a software platform providing Universal Autonomy. The autonomy is fast to deploy, low-energy, hassle-free and hardware agnostic, so can be used in a vast array of on and off-road vehicle types.
Ozgur Tohumcu, CEO of Oxbotica, said: “We are very excited about the support we have received from new and existing investors. This investment round marks a key chapter in Oxbotica’s continued growth and pushes us forward in commercialising our autonomous software today, through key strategic go-to-market partnerships. The high-quality and global footprint of our investors supports our position as a truly international autonomy company that will support the global deployment of our transformative technology.”
Greg Norman, investor at BGF led the deal alongside Elliot Vickerstaff.
Greg Norman said: “We are delighted to have completed this investment, and to welcome Oxbotica into the BGF portfolio. Oxbotica’s pioneering technology represents true innovation in the sector and we are thrilled to support them on their growth journey.
“It’s a very exciting time for the business as they continue to grow and accelerate the commercial deployment of their innovative software solution. Oxbotica have a talented and dedicated team with a strong performance history, and we greatly look forward to continue to work with them as the business expands.”
Rob Wood, partner at Osborne Clarke: "Autonomous vehicles, and the software that drives them, is an incredibly exciting sector at the crossroads of technology, decarbonisation and mobility. BGF has a history of backing innovative and successful companies and we are proud to have advised on its Oxbotica investment."
Osborne Clarke's Transport and Automotive sector team is led by Simon Spooner and advises on all aspects of established and emerging intelligent transport. This includes developments in technology, software and infrastructure that make urban mobility more efficient; electric vehicles and the development of autonomous vehicles, new electronic payment systems, smart airports and new business models. The team also advises on the emerging regulatory environment and investments into innovative companies which are driving the sector.
The advisors to the BGF transaction also included Barry Carter and Sky Weber at KPMG (financial due diligence).
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