Chinese autonomous driving startup Pony AI, which is backed by Toyota and Nio Capital, has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company is planning to list on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol PONY.
Pony AI has received a total of more than $1.3 billion in funding through seven rounds before its planned IPO. The underwriters for its US IPO include Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank, Huatai Securities, and Tiger Brokers.
Founded in 2016, Pony AI has established R&D centers in Silicon Valley, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. The company also operates automated driving operations in countries such as South Korea, Luxembourg, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
The main goal of Pony AI is to develop Virtual Drivers for different car models and scenarios, focusing on robotaxi, robotruck, and personally-owned vehicles (POV) businesses. The company launched China’s first robotaxi service towards the end of 2018 and currently operates a fleet of over 250 vehicles.
Pony AI has accumulated nearly 40 million kilometers of total self-driving road test mileage. In terms of revenue, the company reported $71.9 million in 2023, marking a 5.1 percent increase from the previous year. In the first half of 2024, Pony AI reported revenue of $24.72 million, reflecting a growth of 101.2 percent from the same period last year.
Nio Capital made an undisclosed investment in Pony AI at the end of 2019, while Toyota injected $400 million into the company in February 2020. In August 2023, Pony AI signed an agreement with Toyota and GAC Toyota to establish a joint venture for operating a robotaxi business in China. Additionally, in October 2023, the company received a $100 million investment from Saudi Arabia’s Neom and its investment fund NIF (Neom Investment Fund).
Overall, Pony AI is set to become the first publicly traded company in the global robotaxi space, showcasing its commitment to advancing autonomous driving technology and services.
