M&G Investments has added to its collection of private investments by injecting $25m (£19m) into a start-up that is developing tech for self-driving vehicles.
M&G and venture capital fund Varana Capital spearheaded the $74m (£55m) funding round for TriEye, an Israeli tech firm which specialises in mass-market short-wave infrared (SWIR) sensing solutions. The round takes its total funding to $96m.
The money will go toward the launch of new imaging and ranging technology for autonomous vehicles which can be used to see better in adverse conditions.
Though not traditionally known for investing in companies pre-IPO, M&G has been ramping up its investments in private businesses this year.
In May, the fund group participated in a £195m funding round for Neil Woodford favourite Oxford Nanopore ahead of its listing on the London Stock Exchange.
Over the summer it invested in a pair of early-stage carbon capture and storage companies as part of its goal to achieve net zero carbon emissions across its entire investment portfolio by 2050.
M&G’s investment into TriEye was made via its Asia Pacific equity team, which was set up by Carl Vine (pictured) and Dave Perrett in September 2019. It marks the team’s second investment in the autonomous driving space after funnelling $35m into the proposed listing of Arbe Robotics in March.
Vine said TriEye’s SWIR technology has the potential to be transformational across a wide range of sectors, including medical imaging, logistics and mobility industries.
“The world is in the process of giving computers eyes. This is giving rise to extraordinary changes in the way we make and use the products and services that surround us,” Vine said.
“By re-imagining SWIR technology at a price point far below existing SWIR solutions, TriEye will play an important role in enabling higher levels of automation in the global economy.”
M&G’s $25m contribution was made via the £143bn Prudential With-Profits Fund.
The funding round was also backed by Samsung Ventures, Intel Capital and Porsche.
See also: Quilter replaces Schroders with M&G on Japanese equity fund
