Nikola Chairman In Talks To Back Self-Driving Truck Maker TuSimple: Report


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Nikola Corporation’s (NASDAQ:NKLA) freshly-appointed chairman, Steve Girsky, is looking to back self-driving truck maker TuSimple, TechCrunch reported Sunday.

What Happened: Girsky would be funding the investment from his consulting and investment firm VectoIQ LLC, run in partnership with managing partner Mary Chan, people familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.

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Girsky’s firm would reportedly be a part of a consortium of investors and the deal is likely to close in mid-October.

In July, TuSimple announced a two-year partnership with transport-vehicle manufacturer Navistar International Corporation (NYSE:NAV) for the sale of its autonomous vehicles through the latter’s channels. 

Volkswagen AG (OTC:VWAGY) subsidiary Traton Group also signed a partnership to develop self-driving trucks with TuSimple and picked up a minority stake in the autonomous-vehicle company last week. 

Why It Matters: TuSimple is already backed by Sina Corporation (NASDAQ:SINA), United Parcel Service, Inc (NYSE:UPS), and Mando Corp. It has raised a total of $298.1 million in eight funding rounds, as per Crunchbase.

In June, it was reported that TuSimple was looking to raise up to $250 million in fresh funding and hired Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) for helping it secure the capital.

The autonomous vehicle maker's revenue is reportedly short of the projections it made in 2016. TuSimple estimated at the time it would rake in $284 million revenue in 2020 and $1 billion in 2021 from its U.S. operations.

Girsky replaced Trevor Milton as Nikola Executive Chairman on Sept. 21 following fraud allegations at the automaker. He previously served as vice-chairman at General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM).

Short-seller Hindenburg Research had made allegations of intricate fraud soon after a deal between GM and Nikola was announced.

Photo courtesy: TuSimple


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Posted In: NewsRumorsFinancingTechMediaelectric vehiclesEVsself-driving technologytechcrunchTuSimple