Via raises $492.9M in IPO, and German automakers go on the offensive

Welcome back! Did you miss me? Yes, of course you did. There is a lot of “future of transportation” news to keep track of. Let’s jump in. 

It’s comeback week, and not just because I have returned from vacation. I’m talking about the biennial IAA Mobility conference in Munich and the purposeful effort among German automakers to show the world it can still offer compelling, technologically advanced, and affordable vehicles. The subtext of the splashy event that started Tuesday: “Hey, China, we’re not out of the race.”

VW Group, Mercedes, and BMW all showcased numerous new vehicles, including electric ones. And executives made their battle cries: VW Group Oliver Blume struck a bullish tone in a few interviews with reporters and laid out the company’s plan to be competitive in China, particularly with EVs, a category where VW has lagged.

But what about on the home front? Chinese automakers have been pushing into Europe, and consumers have responded. The German automakers are hoping their latest products — including a new all-electric Mercedes GLC, the BMW iX3 with its four “superbrain” computers, and the Volkswagen ID Polo and ID Cross concept — will preserve and even grow market share. But they have some work to do. Chinese companies like BYD almost doubled their market share in Europe over the past year, JATO Dynamics reported in July.

One other IAA news item of note: Rimac Technology, the tech and parts unit of Rimac Group, has developed solid-state battery packs it says will be available by late 2027. These batteries apparently pack in the energy and can be charged from 10% to 80% in under 10 minutes.

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A little bird

Hyundai appears to still be committed to Motional, according to two little birds who have shared new investment information with me. 

Hyundai and Aptiv had created a joint venture (called Motional) with an agreement to invest $4 billion in the effort. Aptiv backed out in early 2024, leaving Hyundai to either invest its own money, find other outside partners, or shutter the program altogether. Hyundai opted to invest $1 billion — $475 million directly into Motional as part of a broader deal that includes buying out joint venture partner Aptiv. Hyundai agreed to spend another $448 million to buy 11% of Aptiv’s common equity interest in Motional.

Now it appears Hyundai is investing more into Motional in two tranches. The first is being dispersed this year and is about $452 million. The second comes next year, and I’m still trying to nail down that amount. That first figure is in line with reporting from a Korean outlet. Hyundai declined (a couple of times!) to respond to my questions about the funding. That’s pretty typical for large corporations to stay mum. However, one little bird who is deep within the AV industry also noted that Hyundai might not want to make a big deal about this, considering it’s also working with Waymo. 

In other little bird chirpings, there are two new hires at General Motors that you might find interesting. Sony Mohapatra, the former senior manager of AI compute platforms at Cruise, has landed as director of AI and machine learning engineering at General Motors. And Paul Menson, who was the senior staff account manager of Megapack at Tesla, is now director of energy storage systems business development at General Motors. 

Got a tip for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com or my Signal at kkorosec.07, or Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com.

Deals!

Via, the transit software startup that garnered attention for its consumer-facing on-demand shuttle service, has made its IPO debut. The company, as I have mentioned before, has been batting around plans for an IPO for years. 

Earlier this year, it filed confidentially for an IPO — the second time it took this step. But this time, Via took the big IPO leap. The company, which is known for its Citymapper mobile navigation app, said it sold 10.7 million shares for $46 per share. In all, Via raised $492.9 million at a $3.7 billion valuation. That’s just slightly above its $3.5 billion valuation that it garnered back in 2023 during its last venture raise. 

We had to wrap up this newsletter before it officially began trading, but I’ll be back next week with an update. 

Other deals that got my attention …

Arc Boats, the Los Angeles startup founded in 2021 by former SpaceX employees, signed a $160 million contract with Curtin Maritime for new hybrid-electric tugs, which are expected to hit the waters around the Los Angeles port in 2027. 

LeydenJar, the Netherlands-based battery materials startup, raised €13 million ($15.2 million) in a round led by Extantia and Invest-NL.

Standard Fleet, a fleet management software company, raised $13 million in a Series A round led by Nova Threshold with participation from WEX Venture Capital, SNR, Garry Tan (CEO of Y Combinator), Salil Deshpande (Uncorrelated Ventures), and Apoorv Bhargava (WeaveGrid). Returning investors included Burst Capital, Canvas Ventures, Liquid 2, Night Capital, Olive Capital, UP2398, and Danny Wen.

Notable reads and other tidbits

The Federal Aviation Administration announced a new pilot program that will let electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) startups test some operations before they receive full regulatory certification.

Hyundai’s once-buzzy electric air taxi startup Supernal is having trouble getting off the ground. The company paused work on its aircraft program after a rocky few months that saw staff cuts and the departure of its CEO and CTO, two people familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.

InDrive, the Mountain View-based startup that got its start in Siberia and is known for its bidding-based ride-hailing model across Asia and Latin America, wants to be a global super app. Here’s what and where it’s targeting.

Jaguar Land Rover said a cyberattack brought vehicle assembly lines to a standstill.

Lyft and May Mobility have launched a robotaxi service in Atlanta, the first commercial deployment in the two companies’ partnership.

Nevada’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration opened an investigation after a Boring Company employee sustained a “crushing injury” working on one of its tunnels in Las Vegas. Work has stopped at the site.

Tesla has the proper permit to begin testing autonomous vehicle technology on public roads in Nevada. As I explain in this article, securing a testing permit in the state is straightforward and easy. (Just fill out the registry form, and make sure you have the proper $5 million insurance coverage.) Tesla will still need to complete the self-certification process to be able to roll out an entire program. And it will need separate approval to operate a commercial ride-hailing service. 

Uber and Chinese autonomous vehicle startup Momenta plan to start testing robotaxis in Munich starting in 2026.

The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Uber, accusing the ride-hailing company of violating federal law by discriminating against people with physical disabilities.

One more thing …

TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 is right around the corner — in around six weeks or so. And we have some high-profile folks from the transportation world coming onto our stage at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The event, which will be held October 27 to 29, will include Wayve co-founder and CEO Alex Kendall, Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana, and Flexport founder and CEO Ryan Petersen. And more are coming. Stay tuned.

You can buy tickets here. And be sure to check out our Startup Battlefield 200, a pretty incredible list of startups that will be exhibiting — and some pitching on the main stage.