Autonomous Transport and Aerospace Draw Billions in Fresh Capital

The Boring Company has secured $3 billion in an equity funding round led by investors from the United Arab Emirates, lifting Elon Musk’s tunnel construction venture to a $23 billion valuation. Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Human Capital, Vy Capital, and Valor Equity Partners participated in the financing.

The company has also contracted to build an additional 150 kilometers of subterranean transportation tunnels across the UAE, following its development of the Dubai Loop. Its main U.S. operating network remains in Las Vegas, Nevada, where human-driven Tesla vehicles carry passengers between Resorts World, Encore, the Sahara, the Las Vegas Convention Center, and Harry Reid International Airport.

Reusable rocket manufacturer Stoke Space raised $1 billion in new capital. Point72 Ventures, the technology investment vehicle of billionaire Steve Cohen, and Spark Capital co-led the round. General Innovation, Glade Brook Capital, US Innovative Technology, Washington Harbour Partners, Woven Capital, and Y Combinator also participated.

German automaker Porsche completed the sale of its remaining holdings in Bugatti Rimac and the Rimac Group to HOF Capital for approximately €1 billion ($1.08 billion). Executive management said approximately €250 million of the net proceeds will fund company pension obligations.

Lyft has deployed Waymo autonomous vehicles on its network in Nashville, Tennessee, its first commercial offering operating without a human safety driver behind the wheel. Passengers can request driverless rides through the Waymo application or the standard Lyft platform, which matches users with available Waymo vehicles according to real-time fleet availability and location.

Fleet readiness, routine maintenance, depot management, and vehicle servicing are handled by Flexdrive, Lyft’s wholly owned fleet service subsidiary. The company is structuring its 2026 operational roadmaps around expanded partnerships with Waymo and Baidu, according to Jeremy Bird, Lyft’s executive vice president of growth, who oversees international expansion, luxury services, and autonomous vehicle integration.

Lyft’s commercial services in London with Baidu remain pending regulatory activation. The company is prioritizing international expansion into urban markets that permit hybrid operational networks combining human drivers and autonomous fleets.

Before the Nashville deployment, Lyft spent four years developing proprietary self-driving systems through its Level 5 business division. It sold the unit to Toyota’s Woven Planet Holdings in April 2021 for $550 million amid industry-wide consolidation, then paused internal development to focus on core ride-hailing operations.

Lyft later entered commercial pilot agreements with Aptiv, now Motional, in Las Vegas; May Mobility in Atlanta; Baidu in London; and Waymo in Phoenix.

Travis Kalanick, Uber’s co-founder and former CEO, is initiating a hiring campaign at his current startup, Atoms, to develop autonomous robotaxi offerings. Uber separately invested $10 million in Indian fleet management platform Carrum Mobility during a Series B round, pushing Carrum’s post-money valuation to ₹16 billion ($168 million).

Global operator inDrive is expanding beyond traditional ride-hailing services into auxiliary mobility sectors. Nairobi-based electric mobility startup ARC Ride raised $33.3 million in funding led by Novastar Ventures and Norrsken22, with participation from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), British International Investment, Proparco, Musashi Seimitsu, and Talanton.

Ford Motor Co. appointed former Raytheon executive Tomaz Seignemartin as vice president of continuous improvement, former General Dynamics executive Shirish Srinivasan as chief of staff to the chief strategy officer, and former Lockheed Martin generative AI team lead Nathan Rigoni as senior software engineer.

Austin, Texas-based startup Tern secured an $11.26 million contract from the U.S. Army to supply tactical, GPS-independent mapping and navigation software for military vehicle operations in contested environments.

Poseidon Aerospace completed a $60 million Series A funding round before planned inaugural flight trials later this year for its uncrewed cargo aircraft, the Egret. TQ Ventures led the round, joined by Hanwha Asset Management, G Squared, JAWS, Starship Ventures, Draper Associates, and Drover Ventures.

Electric aircraft developers Beta Technologies, Joby Aviation, and Wisk began flight demonstrations in Texas under the Federal Aviation Administration’s Advanced Air Mobility and Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) Integration Pilot Program (eIPP). The tests evaluate operational corridors and airspace integration connecting regional centers, including Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.

In Europe, Pony.ai and Croatian mobility company Verne, backed by Rimac, began fully driverless public road tests with passengers in Zagreb. Spanish regulators also granted national autonomous vehicle operation permits to WeRide in partnership with Uber and Avomo.

Chinese autonomous logistics provider Neolix began closed-course vehicle testing in Japan, while Pony.ai demonstrated fully driverless testing in Doha, Qatar. Pony.ai continues to operate commercial robotaxi services in Qatar with human safety drivers alongside regional partner Mowasalat.

Orlando-based autonomous shuttle operator Beep closed a $20 million Series B round led by Mobileye, bringing its total capital raised to $130 million. In Germany, Munich-based electric truck charging software developer Fryte Mobility secured €3.5 million ($4 million) in seed funding led by 4impact capital and Rethink Ventures, alongside Revent, F-LOG, and accilium ventures.

Autonomy, the California-based electric vehicle subscription business founded by TrueCar creator Scott Painter, adjusted its fleet acquisition model to add internal combustion engine vehicles alongside its electric offerings.