General Motors takes stake in British car tracking startup as it looks to driverless future
US car giant General Motors (GM) is taking a stake in a British technology startup as it prepares for a driverless future.
The deal, which values Chester-based Wejo at $275m (£213m), includes a $25m cash injection into the connected cars firm.
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It also gives Wejo access to data from around 12m GM cars, valued at more than $70m, Sky News reported, citing sources.
Last year Wejo made its first acquisition, buying Silicon Valley startup Carjojo.
Since its start in 2014 Wejo has gathered data from 78bn miles of journeys from 7m vehicles.
The company’s tracking system is used in cars from 190 countries around the world. It employs over 150 people and has offices in the US and Manchester.
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Wejo hopes its data can promote safety by predicting collisions.
“The value of this data to industries like traffic and mapping, urban mobility, insurance, parking and geolocation is potentially enormous,” one insider told Sky News.