Upstream Security Closes $30 Million Series B Investment from Renault, Volvo Group, Hyundai, Nationwide
Global Syndicate - including Renault Venture Capital, Volvo Group, Hyundai, Nationwide Insurance and others - invests to protect connected vehicles from escalating cyber threats; validates cloud-based automotive cybersecurity as the right path forward to address automotive cyber attacks
Oct 21, 2019, 06:00 ET
HERZELIYA, Israel, Oct. 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Upstream Security, the leader in cybersecurity for connected vehicles, today announced that a prominent syndicate of investors, including some of the world's largest OEM automotive vehicle manufacturers, insurance and fleet operators, invested $30 million in a Series B funding round, bringing the company's total investment to date to $41 million. The round was led by Renault Venture Capital and included Volvo Group Venture Capital, Hyundai, Hyundai AutoEver, Nationwide Ventures and others. Original Upstream investors Charles River Ventures, Glilot Capital and Maniv Mobility all participated in the round.
"This first of its kind investor syndicate, which includes some of the most important smart mobility companies in the world, is a testament to the severity of the problem the industry is tackling and a ringing endorsement of Upstream's technology and the progress our team has made," said Yoav Levy, Upstream Security Co-founder and CEO. "Our mission is to protect every connected vehicle and smart mobility service on the planet - the completion of our funding is perfectly timed to meet the growing demand for our data driven cloud-based platform, providing our customers with the capabilities they need to accomplish this vitally important task."
The inherent risks in connected cars were in the headlines multiple times over the past 18 months culminating with consumer groups identifying connected vehicles as a potential national security threat. Earlier this year a report published by Upstream Security outlining the automotive threat landscape spanning the past decade, demonstrated that multiple stakeholders ranging from OEM vehicle manufacturers to commercial and public sector fleets have been targeted. In many cases attacks were executed indirectly via connected services and applications and from long distance.
Establishing a security framework for connected cars entails a multi-layer approach that secures both the vehicles as well as the infrastructure connecting them. With prolonged time-to-market and limited coverage of in-vehicle security solutions, the Upstream C4 platform solves this fundamental problem by enabling OEM car manufacturers and fleets to detect, monitor and respond to attacks targeting any part of the connected vehicle framework – even for vehicles already on the road.
"We were impressed by Upstream's mature platform and exciting customer traction, which is why we made the investment," said Christian Noske, Head of Alliance Ventures. "Upstream's world-class team built a truly unique cloud-based automotive cybersecurity model that is highly scalable with a visionary technical approach that solves a growing problem in the mobility industry."
"Securing our customers' connected vehicles is always top of mind for Volvo," noted David Hanngren, Investment Director at Volvo Group. "We have chosen to invest in Upstream because they have a great vision for addressing this unique sector, an impressive management team and serious depth in both automotive domain expertise and cybersecurity."
"Security is the core element of connected vehicle which we cannot compromise,'' said Yunseong Hwang, VP of Open Innovation Investment Group at Hyundai Motor. "Upstream has demonstrated how its optimized security technology can strengthen vehicle security. They are also keeping pace with technology to ensure its innovation evolves beyond simple vehicle movement. We believe that Upstream is leading the innovation in security of connected vehicle."
"Nationwide understands that the safety and security of connected vehicles go hand-in-hand." said Erik Ross, leader of Nationwide's venture capital team, "As technology in vehicles becomes even more sophisticated, security is a critical building block and Upstream's solution focuses on protecting our members' in the evolving mobility ecosystem."
For more insights about the funding, read this blog post from Yoav Levy, co-founder and CEO of Upstream Security.
About Upstream Security
Upstream Security is the first cybersecurity solution designed specifically for protecting connected vehicles from cyber-threats or misuse at rest and in motion. Protecting connected cars is a complex problem involving multiple layers (driver, telematics, mobile application, vehicles, fleets), mountains of data flowing at high speed and a specialized and discrete understanding of smart mobility business and usage type. Upstream's platform is entirely cloud-based and seamlessly ingests and normalizes automotive data to deliver cybersecurity insights that ensure vehicle security and safety is never compromised.
About Groupe Renault
Groupe Renault, which has manufactured cars since 1898, is an international group operating in 134 countries. In 2018, it sold nearly 3.9 million vehicles. Worldwide, the group employs more than 180,000 people and has 36 manufacturing sites and 12,700 points of sale. To address the major technological challenges of the future and continue to pursue its profitable growth strategy, Groupe Renault focuses on international expansion. To do this It builds on the synergies between its five brands (Renault, Dacia, Renault Samsung Motors, Alpine and LADA), the electric vehicle, and its unique alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors. With a 100% Renault owned team committed to the Formula 1 World Championship since 2016, the brand is involved in motorsports to boost innovation and name recognition. www.group.renault.com
About Volvo Group Venture Capital
Volvo Group Venture Capital AB was founded in 1997 and is Volvo Group's corporate investment company. The role is to drive new business growth through identifying and initiating partnerships with innovative companies participating in the transformation of our industry. To identify new partnerships, Volvo Group Venture Capital cooperate with an extensive global network of entrepreneurs and investors. For the evaluation we work in close collaboration with our commercial and engineering teams. The focus is on areas in which technology-based innovation results in new solutions that improves the profitability of Volvo Group's customers and enable new business opportunities for the Volvo Group.
About Hyundai CRADLE
Hyundai CRADLE is Hyundai Motor's corporate venturing and open innovation business, which partners and invests extensively in prominent global startups to accelerate the development of advanced future automotive technologies. CRADLE identifies newly established startups that focus, amongst others, on 'Disruptive Innovations', including mobility services, artificial intelligence, robotics, smart energy solutions, smart city and cyber security.
More information about Hyundai CRADLE can be found:
http://www.cradleinc.com or http://globalpr.Hyundai.com
About Hyundai Motor Company
Established in 1967, Hyundai Motor Company is committed to becoming a lifetime partner in automobiles and beyond with its range of world-class vehicles and mobility services offered available in more than 200 countries. Employing more than 110,000 employees worldwide, Hyundai sold more than 4.5 million vehicles globally. Hyundai Motor continues to enhance its product line-up with vehicles that are helping to build solutions for a more sustainable future, such as NEXO – the world's first dedicated hydrogen-powered SUV.
More information about Hyundai Motor Company and its products can be found at: http://worldwide.hyundai.com or http://globalpr.hyundai.com
Disclaimer: Hyundai Motor Company believes the information contained herein to be accurate at the time of release. However, the company may upload new or updated information if required and assumes that it is not liable for the accuracy of any information interpreted and used by the reader.
About Nationwide
Nationwide, a Fortune 100 company based in Columbus, Ohio, is one of the largest and strongest diversified insurance and financial services organizations in the United States. Nationwide is rated A+ by both A.M. Best and Standard & Poor's. An industry leader in driving customer-focused innovation, Nationwide provides a full range of insurance and financial services products including auto, business, homeowners, farm and life insurance; public and private sector retirement plans, annuities and mutual funds; excess & surplus, specialty and surety; pet, motorcycle and boat insurance. For more information, visit www.nationwide.com. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Nationwide, Nationwide is on your side and the Nationwide N and Eagle are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. © 2019
Connect with Upstream
Upstream's team will be showcasing its cloud-based automotive cybersecurity solution at the following events: Auto-ISAC summit (October 23-24, Plano, Texas), Smart Mobility Summit (October 28-29, Tel-Aviv), and TU Automotive Europe (October 29-30, Munich).
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