Stellantis Ventures Seeds Innovation With 11 Key Investments Into Sustainable Mobility

AMSTERDAM, June 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- 

• Stellantis Ventures to support Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan
• Stellantis Ventures invests in 10 startups, one mobility venture fund to power innovation
• Three Stellantis Ventures-based projects are launching in 2023
• Investments accelerate adoption of cutting-edge technologies in compressed timeframes
• All projects focus on innovations to improve mobility and customer experience

Stellantis Ventures, the corporate venture fund of Stellantis N.V., has been formed to support and amplify the execution of the Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan.

Ten startup companies and one mobility venture fund have been considered so far as its first key investments. Three of the projects backed by Stellantis Ventures are launching this year, validating the fund's mission to accelerate deployment of innovative, customer-centric mobility technologies and supporting Stellantis' Dare Forward 2030 efforts in leading the change to a more sustainable mobility and better in-vehicle experience for all customers.

"Transforming Stellantis into a mobility tech company means we need to have the mindset of a startup, focused on our customers and working with a dash of impatience," said Ned Curic, Stellantis chief technology officer. "We are using the strength of Stellantis Ventures to connect with companies that are developing cutting-edge technology that we believe can transform the in-cabin experience and improve the mobility sector, for our customers and for society as a whole."

Investments support the Dare Forward 2030 strategy and are aligned to the three core pillars:  care, tech and value.

CARE

• 6K enables advanced sustainable manufacturing to ensure clean, low-carbon emission material production. 6K's UniMelt plasma process is a cutting-edge platform for producing domestic sustainable critical materials for EV batteries, 3D printing and endless other applications. 6K delivers true sustainable manufacturing - faster, cleaner, and at a lower cost
   
• Beweelsociety, a startup with roots inside Stellantis, is a developer of connected e-bikes and provider of a wide range of services from purchasing to cycling through one unique digital app, including financing, insurance, facilitation and care services (maintenance, anti-theft). Expanding the vision beyond traditional auto, beweelsociety helps Stellantis accelerate the growth of sustainable and soft mobility. The first e-bikes will be available to purchase from specialized cycling networks and technology-focused retailers in Europe, starting the last quarter of 2023
   
• NetZero is a climate venture specializing in long-term carbon removal from the atmosphere by turning agriculture residues into biochar, a very stable form of carbon. Biochar can be mixed with agricultural soils, improving yields and reducing the need for fertilizers. NetZero's mission is to bring biochar at scale in the tropics - for climate and people

TECH 

• Nauto deployed artificial intelligence and computer vision technology, combined with advanced risk data science, to more than 800 commercial fleets to help save money and lives through safer driving. Nauto's safety system assesses both driver behavior risk and external road risk, warning and coaching drivers to reduce distracted driving and prevent collisions in real time while respecting driver privacy. Nauto Cloud and mobile applications help fleet safety and risk managers operate fleets more efficiently, identify and coach at-risk drivers, and accelerate claims processing. The Nauto solution will be available this summer in the United States on Stellantis commercial fleet vehicles
   
• Trails Offroad, staffed by off-road experts and enthusiasts, offers a digital library of more than 3,000 detailed offroad trail guides throughout the United States and Canada that can be loaded in the Jeep® Uconnect system. Each trail guide provides detailed information, including route description, key waypoints, difficulty ratings, points of interest, videos and reviews. Beginning this summer, select new Jeep vehicles will have access to more than 200 notable trail guides, including the 62 Jeep Badge of Honor trails. The full catalog will be offered as a subscription service
   
• Viaduct is an artificial intelligence platform designed to improve vehicle analytics for quality and maintenance. The platform deploys its machine learning algorithms to identify anomalies in fault and sensor data, predict vehicle health and enhance preventative maintenance routines, making vehicles safer, more reliable and personalized
   
• Geoflex is a worldwide operator of satellite positioning augmentation technology designed to augment accuracy, integrity and continuity of operation of all global navigation satellite systems receivers, whatever the brand is. Its hypergeolocation services provide accurate, safe and resilient positioning down to four centimeters accuracy everywhere in the world, on land, at sea and in the air
   
• Envisics is a globally renowned pioneer of dynamic holographic technologies with an application for augmented reality head-up displays (AR-HUDs) and automotive sensor systems. The advancement of Envisics technology has the opportunity to transform automotive displays and revolutionize the in-car experience
   

VALUE 

• Electra Vehicles, a leading provider of battery software solutions for electric mobility, provides active and adaptive controls for battery management systems, predictive battery analytics and battery pack design software. With embedded and cloud-based artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) battery enhancement features, Electra aims to maximize the full potential of battery power to enable electric mobility to take us further
  
  
• Lyten created Lyten 3D Graphene, a unique decarbonization materials platform tunable for a wide range of advanced applications: lightweight composites for reduced vehicle weight, advanced sensors to improve driver experience, and a breakthrough highly sustainable lithium-sulfur battery that uses zero nickel, cobalt or manganese, has higher energy density, lower carbon footprint and enables supply chain independence

Stellantis Ventures will be present at MOVE 2023 on June 21-22 as an exhibitor in booth #36 and a main speaker, delivering the opening keynote on June 22 titled "Start Me Up! The central role of incubators in driving mobility forward" and joining a panel discussion on "The start-up ecosystem and the unicorn journey."

Stellantis Ventures is not disclosing the name of the mobility venture fund investment.

Stellantis Ventures was announced in March 2022 as a key component of the Stellantis Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan. Dare Forward 2030 sets out a series of important targets, led by deep emission cuts to slash CO2 in half by 2030, benchmarking the 2021 metrics, to achieve carbon net zero by 2038 with single-digit percentage compensation of the remaining emissions. Core targets for Dare Forward 2030 also include 100% of passenger car sales in Europe and 50% of passenger car and light-duty truck sales in the United States to be BEVs by the end of the decade; the ambition of doubling net revenues by 2030 (versus 2021) and sustaining double-digit adjusted operating income margins throughout the decade; and the aim to become number one in customer satisfaction for its products and services in every market by 2030.

Stellantis Ventures
Established with an initial investment of €300 million, Stellantis Ventures is the first Stellantis corporate venture fund. It targets early and later-stage startup companies that are developing cutting-edge technologies for the automotive and mobility sectors and are focused on improving outcomes for individual customers and society as a whole. The fund has a unique dual mandate that requires portfolio companies to have strong, sustainable growth prospects as well as a high potential for technological adoption within Stellantis' products and operations. Backed by one of the world's leading automakers and mobility provider, Stellantis Ventures is uniquely positioned to drive value quickly and effectively for portfolio members. Entrepreneurs and startups seeking funding can visit https://stellantis.ventures. 

Stellantis
Stellantis N.V. (NYSE / MTA / Euronext Paris: STLA) is one of the world's leading automakers and a mobility provider. Its storied and iconic brands embody the passion of their visionary founders and today's customers in their innovative products and services, including Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroën, Dodge, DS Automobiles, Fiat, Jeep, Lancia, Maserati, Opel, Peugeot, Ram, Vauxhall, Free2Move and Leasys. Powered by our diversity, we lead the way the world moves – aspiring to become the greatest sustainable mobility tech company, not the biggest, while creating added value for all stakeholders as well as the communities in which it operates. For more information, visit www.stellantis.com. 

SOURCE Stellantis