Autonomous truck startup Plus to go public in 1.2 billion-dollar deal with Michael Klein-backed SPAC
Technology
Autonomous truck startup Plus to go public in 1.2 billion-dollar deal with Michael Klein-backed SPAC
(Reuters) - Plus Automation will go public in the US through a merger with a blank-check firm in a deal that values the self-driving truck startup at $1.2 billion, the companies said on Thursday.
The merger with Churchill Capital Corp IX (CCIX.O), backed by veteran Wall Street dealmaker Michael Klein, will provide Plus $300 million in gross proceeds to achieve the commercial launch of its autonomous trucks in 2027.
The self-driving space, widely seen as the future of transportation, has picked up pace in recent months as companies shift from bold promises to cautious progress, with the commercialization of the technology taking gradual shape.
Truck operators in the U.S., responsible for the majority of freight movement within the country, are increasingly looking to automate to reduce transportation and logistics costs amid driver shortages and heightened demand for expedited deliveries.
Deployment of self-driving technology is also expected to gain from less stringent regulations under the Trump administration, which plans to exempt certain vehicles from specific safety requirements and ease rules for reporting safety incidents.
In April, the California Department of Motor Vehicles proposed to allow testing of self-driving heavy-duty trucks and other large vehicles on state public roads.
The deal comes more than four years after Plus's previous attempt to go public via a $3.3 billion blank-check deal at the height of the SPAC frenzy, which was eventually canceled.
Such deals have fallen out of favor since, as intense regulatory scrutiny and rising interest rates have tapered investor interest.
Founded in 2016, Plus is currently conducting public road testing in Texas and Sweden, with more customer fleet trials scheduled for fall 2025.
Uber-backed Aurora Innovation has also been testing self-driving trucks in Texas.
Plus, which provides autonomy software to truck manufacturers Traton, Hyundai and Iveco, has deployed self-driving technology in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.
