Developer of software for autonomous vehicles, Applied Intuition, closed a $250 million Series E financing round that valued the business at $6 billion, a 67% increase over its previous round.

The transaction takes place at a time when venture capital financing for firms involved in autonomous vehicles has decreased recently.

Elad Gil, Lux Capital, and strategic investor Porsche Investments Management spearheaded the latest round. Other investors, both new and old, such as Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, BOND, and Human Capital, also took part in it.

The software development company, situated in Mountain View, California, creates products for several industries such as mining, construction, trucking, and automotive. The business uses generative AI to generate software that assists clients in creating autonomous driving solutions and driver assistance systems.

According to Applied Intuition, it enjoys lucrative, triple-digit percentage growth every year and presently works with 18 of the top 20 auto OEMs.

Reversal of Falling Investment in AV

The round represents a notable rise in the company’s worth. At a $3.6 billion value, Applied Intuition most recently completed a $175 million Series D round headed by Elad Gil, Addition, and Coatue Management.

The increase occurs in spite of a general decline in venture funding for autonomous vehicles. According to Crunchbase data, the amount of money that autonomous driving businesses raised last year was less than $5 billion, which is the lowest amount since 2017.

The decline coincided with a number of setbacks for the sector. After ten years of work, Apple abruptly ended its autonomous electric car initiative just last month.

Following an incident with a pedestrian that resulted in the loss of its permit to operate in San Francisco, Cruise said late last year that it would be suspending its self-driving taxi program countrywide.

Moreover, Argo AI, an autonomous car startup supported by Ford Motor, closed its doors in 2022 after obtaining $3.6 billion in investment from investors including Lyft, Volkswagen Group, and Ford Motor.