Automotive manufacturer General Motors has made a $25m series B investment in UK-based smart car data marketplace Wejo in return for a 35% stake, Sky News has reported, citing undisclosed insiders.
Founded in 2014, Wejo has developed a cloud-based platform that processes, analyses and shares the data collected from a network that had grown to 7 million connected cars as of October 2018.
The system allowing customers such as mapping software providers, car park operators, car dealerships and emergency service operators to exchange and access information.
The deal increased the company’s valuation to $275m and was completed in conjunction with a data-sharing agreement that will involve GM providing more than $70m worth of data from its connected vehicles over a seven-year period.
Wejo is also working with undisclosed other carmakers. The round took its overall funding to $33.5m and the cash will be used to expand its team in both the UK and the US.
The company received approximately $1.9m from private equity firm DIP Capital in November 2018, which followed $6.9m from undisclosed investors in January 2018. The latter deal came in the wake of about $28m in earlier funding, according to Wejo, which did not reveal additional details.