35. Waabi
Founder: Raquel Urtasun (CEO)Launched: 2021Headquarters: TorontoFunding: $280 millionValuation: N/AKey Technologies: Artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, deep neural networks/deep learning, augmented reality/virtual reality/mixed reality, generative AI, machine learning, digital twinsIndustry: AutomotivePrevious appearances on Disruptor 50 list: 0
Waabi is part of a new generation of autonomous vehicle startups focusing on the long-haul trucking market rather than around town and airport passenger pickups. With more than 70 percent of freight in the U.S. moving via truck, a difficult working environment in the cab with grueling hours, and the industry facing consistent driver shortages, it is a market ripe for technological disruption.
Waabi's core proposition rests on its proprietary "Waabi World," a closed-loop simulator designed to train and test autonomous vehicle systems almost entirely in a virtual environment, using generative AI. This allows its autonomous vehicles to experience millions of different driving scenarios without putting anyone in the real world at risk. It also released CoPilot 4D, an AI foundational model that can envision the world in 3D to improve decision-making for AV trucks.
"A system like this has astounding abilities to generalize and handle the unknown, is more efficient to train, and its safety can be mathematically validated and verified," Waabi founder & CEO Raquel Urtasun said in an interview with CNBC.
Urtasun was formerly R&D head at Uber Advanced Technologies Group, which was acquired by Waabi rival Aurora in 2020, and was also named to the 2024 CNBC Changemakers list.
In June of last year, the company completed its largest VC round, a $200 million Series B fundraising led by Uber and Khosla Ventures. It was also the largest VC raise in Canadian startup history, and added new investors Nvidia, Porsche, and the venture capital arm of Volvo.
Investors have also announced partnerships, with Volvo saying in February it will deploy Waabi's technology on its self-driving trucks, and Waabi's generative AI-powered self-driving applications using NVIDIA DRIVE Thor autonomous vehicle chip technology.
An earlier 10-year collaboration between Waabi Driver and Uber Freight's logistics system for U.S. shipments started in Dallas and Houston, and is expected to expand throughout Texas and beyond. However, Waabi has yet to deploy vehicles commercially without safety drivers. It is working towards that goal by the end of 2025.
The company is working with Volvo to produce autonomous trucks at its factories that can be sold to freight shippers and carriers, and would operate as a service subscription with the client paying Waabi on a per-mile basis.
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