Carmakers Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi have jointly formed a $200m corporate venturing fund that will focus on mobility technology, Reuters reported on Friday, citing three undisclosed sources.
The fund will be overseen by the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance the companies formed in September 2017, following the former two’s exchange of strategic equity stakes in 1999 and Nissan’s acquisition of a 34% stake in Mitsubishi in 2016.
Renault and Nissan will each provide 40% of the capital for the fund, while Mitsubishi will put up the remaining 20%. The structure of the fund will mean each member will get a clear vision of their ownership of each asset.
The fund is scheduled to be officially unveiled at the CES technology show tomorrow, when more details of its targets are expected to be revealed. An source from the alliance told Reuters: “It will allow us to move faster on acquisitions ahead of our competition”.
The initiative will be the latest in a series of corporate venturing units formed by large automotive manufacturers, including GM Ventures, BMW I Ventures and the artificial intelligence-focused Toyota AI Ventures, while the likes of Daimler and Ford are also active investors.