Zongmu will build a campus capable of supplying autonomous driving systems for 2 million vehicles per year in Dongyang, Zhejiang province.

(Image credit: Zongmu Technology)

Zongmu Technology, a Qualcomm-backed Chinese autonomous driving startup, announced today that it has closed a Series E round of funding of more than RMB 1 billion ($157 million), about 10 months after its last funding round.

Dongyang Guanding, jointly launched by the Dongyang State-owned Assets Investment Co and Zhejiang Caitong Capital Investment Co, was the lead investor, with other investors including Sunic Capital, Zuoyu Capital and several others.

The financing will be used to accelerate its investment in research and development for its self-driving mass production projects, in addition to building a campus in Dongyang, Zhejiang province, capable of supplying self-driving systems for 2 million vehicles a year, according to a news release.

Zongmu is a Shanghai-based supplier of ADS (Autonomous Driving System) and ADAS (Advanced Driving Assistance System) technologies, and its products include ADS/ADAS (domain) controllers, cameras, millimeter-wave radar, and ultrasonic sensors.

The company was founded in 2013, and in 2017 it released the first generation of AVP (Autonomous Valet Parking) technology as one of the first companies to achieve autonomous parking in underground parking environments without GPS signals.

In 2019, with the help of high-precision millimeter-wave radar and ultrasonic sensors, its AVP technology can achieve more advanced parking intelligence regardless of light conditions.

On June 3 last year, the company announced the completion of a Series D round of funding for a cumulative amount of $190 million, with investors including a fund backed by smartphone giant Xiaomi.

A Zongmu spokeswoman told CnEVPost at the time that the company was considering listing on China's Nasdaq-style sci-tech innovation board, also known as the STAR market.

As a high-tech company, Zongmu wants to and is actively preparing for a potential initial public offering on the STAR market, the company said, without giving further details.

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