Einride Keeps on Trucking Autonomously With $500M Investment

Einride AB, which offers freight mobility technology, yesterday said it has secured $500 million in financing, including both a $200 million Series C equity raise and a $300 million debt facility. The Stockholm-based startup said it plans to use the funding for new development and deployment of its autonomous trucks and digital products and for expanding to new markets.

“The time is now to act on not only developing, but [also] accelerating the implementation of technology that will create a cleaner, safer, and more efficient way to move goods,” stated Robert Falck, founder and CEO at Einride. “We’ve created the Einride ecosystem to provide the most resilient and future-proof approach to electrifying freight today. With the support from our investors and shared belief in this mission, we’ll continue to drive disruptive change to global freight at scale.”

Founded in 2016, Einride said it has built grids including fleets of its Einride Saga vehicles, charging infrastructure, and connectivity networks. The company claimed that it was the first in the world to deploy an electric, autonomous vehicle on a public road in 2019. It received approval to operate its vehicle on a U.S. public road in 2022.

Barclays Europe provides loan

Einride said the $300 million in debt financing is the largest asset-backed facility to date for heavy-duty electric vehicles. The financing includes an initial facility rollout of $150 million starting in January 2023, signed with Barclays Europe.

“This landmark debt facility represents a key milestone in the financing of heavy-duty electric vehicles,” said Gordon Beck, director of securitised products solutions at Barclays. “The innovative asset-backed structure complements Einride’s unique ecosystem offering and is a continued demonstration of how Barclays is using our financial and capital markets expertise to support clients in driving the transition to net-zero [emissions].”

Einride said the financing “ensures long-term funding for Einride’s current and future electric, heavy-duty vehicle fleets.” The company added that its customers use its teleoperated and autonomous vehicles as part of its overall freight ecosystem offering across Europe and the U.S., with future expansions planned.

Einride also raises equity

Einride said it has initially secured $200 million in equity contribution led by a consortium of new investors as well as continued support from existing shareholders. Investors include leading Swedish pension fund AMF, EQT Ventures, Northzone, Polar Structure, Norrsken VC and Temasek.

The equity contribution includes a $90 million convertible note raised earlier this year. Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE acted as sole placement agent on the equity capital raise. Einride raised $110 million in its Series B round in 2021.

The Series C funding “provides a next step in the funding of new developments and deployments” of Einride's autonomous and digital offerings, as well as expansion to new clients, said the company.

Autonomous freight deployments spread

Einride asserted that its ecosystem of autonomous trucks, charging infrastructure, and connectivity networks “unlocks a resilient, cost-effective future for freight.”

In the past 12 months, the company has expanded into Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Norway. It has also deployed operations for new clients including Electrolux; GE Appliances, a Haier company; and Bridgestone.

In October, Einride Saga successfully completed a pilot on a U.S. public road, which Einride said made it the first company to receive approval to do so for a vehicle without a safety driver on board. In November, the company showed its latest release of Einride Stations, freight capacity as a service, and grid operations.