[Stay on top of transportation news: Get TTNews in your inbox.]
Rivian E-Bike Spinoff Lands $1 Billion Valuation
Startup, Called Also, Inks Partnership With DoorDash
Also, an electric bike and transportation startup spun out of Rivian Automotive Inc., has reached a $1 billion valuation in a new funding round, and has struck a partnership with DoorDash Inc. to work on autonomous deliveries.
The financing brought in $200 million for Palo Alto, Calif.-based Also and was led by existing investor Greenoaks Capital. Other backers included Prysm and DoorDash, the company plans to announce March 31.
Also is a micromobility startup initially incubated within electric car company Rivian. It develops small electric vehicles including a premium e-bike for consumers and a four-wheeled variant for commercial uses like delivery. Also unveiled its products in October, after launching with $105 million in funding from Rivian and venture firm Eclipse.
“A big part of this was taking the opportunity to make sure we are well capitalized to execute,” Also President Chris Yu said in an interview.
Alongside the investment, Also is partnering with DoorDash on a multiyear effort to help develop and build out autonomous last-mile delivery. As a part of the new funding round, DoorDash co-founder and the head of its research lab, Stanley Tang, will join Also as a board observer.
“Autonomy in this particular environment hasn’t really been fully solved for yet,” Yu said, citing places like bike lanes, curbs and the shoulders of roads as difficult for computers to navigate.
Image
DoorDash's Dot delivery robot. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg)
That hasn’t stopped delivery companies from racing to experiment with unmanned drop-offs. DoorDash is ramping up investment in new products and artificial intelligence, including its in-house delivery robot Dot for sidewalk and suburban use. It’s also partnering with autonomous delivery firms including Serve Robotics, Coco Robotics and Alphabet Inc.’s Wing drone unit.
Unlike a regular bike, Also’s products currently have pedal-by-wire drive systems — with no mechanical gears. On both the startup’s two-wheeled bike and the quad version, pedaling powers a generator that feeds the battery while software controls torque and speed. The autonomous work Also is doing with DoorDash will leverage the technology underpinning that.
“If you take out the pedal system, what’s left is more or less a really optimized, light, relatively low-speed EV platform,” Yu said.
Meanwhile, Also’s two-wheeled e-bike, called TM-B, has finished manufacturing validation, and the company expects to deliver the product to early customers in late spring.
