Toyota Ventures, Toyota’s rebranded venture capital division is commemorating its identity by investing nearly USD 300 million in advanced technologies and its goal of achieving net-zero carbon emission through two-early stage funds namely- The Toyota Ventures Climate Fund and the Toyota Ventures Frontier.
The launch of new funds, each valuing USD 150 million, tallies Toyota Venture’s total assets under management to more than $500 million. The latest capital injection into the Frontier Fund follows an expansion of Toyota Ventures’ focus, that earlier included mobility, autonomy, AI, robotics, and cloud along with the latest addition of smart cities, digital health, and energy.
From the above it may be conferred that while Toyota Venture’s approach towards investment remains unchanged, it is increasing the scope for startups that the firm can eventually consider investing in.
Notably, as a company, Toyota has over 370,000 employees that cover a wide range of business units in which the firm benefits at large from investing in financial technology. The Frontier Fund is different from mobility, it not only seeks to offer emerging technology to the market but also aims at bringing innovation with respect to customer or acquisition.
According to Jim Adler, Toyota Ventures’ Founding Managing Director, the new Climate Fund aims at investing in startups that can assist Toyota in reaching its goal of Carbon Neutrality by 2050. Moreover, the company has been investing in hydrogen for many years, including its latest alliance with ENEOS- a Japanese fuel firm.
Citing reports, the Climate Fund has been accepting online pitches on its website from various entrepreneurs that are seeking to make early-stake funding.
Recently, Toyota Ventures announced that it is working towards expanding its team and joining hands with a new Advisor Network as a resource for founders who are seeking guidance in various aspects- from product development to recruitment.
Source Credit: https://techcrunch.com/2021/06/03/rebranded-toyota-ventures-invests-300-million-in-emerging-tech-and-carbon-neutrality/