Self-Driving Car Startup Optimus Ride Gets $18 Million for the Race to a Driverless Road
The Boston-based company was approved earlier this summer to begin testing its highly autonomous vehicles on Massachusetts roads.

A self-driving auto technology company named Optimus Ride has secured a fresh $18 million in funding from a group of venture capitalists led by Greycroft Partners to immediately grow its vehicle fleet and make strategic hires.
The startup, a spin-off from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is designing a vehicle with Level 4 autonomous technology for electric vehicle fleets.
"Autonomy is currently revolutionizing the transportation industry," said John Elton, Partner at Greycroft in a news release. "The changes will impact not only transportation users’ free time, but the broader world with a safer, more environmentally friendly and inclusive transportation system."
A recent study by Strategy Analytics estimates the global passenger economy for self-driving vehicles to be around $7 trillion per year by 2050.
Back in June, the company received approval from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation to test its driverless vehicles on a nearly three-mile stretch of public roads in the city of Boston.
Google's self-driving car spinoff, Waymo, showed off its own driverless technology to reporters on Monday at its California testing facility.
But are consumers ready for their driverless future? According to a recent MIT study, 48 percent of respondents said they would NEVER purchase a car that completely drives itself.
MORE TO READ
Related
How Autonomous Trucking Will Actually Work
Researchers say Tesla’s electric 18-wheeler will only make sense in autonomous convoys of seven driving bumper-to-bumper.
Related
Detroit Automakers Need to Start Taking Autonomous Car Startups Seriously
Tech companies are increasingly challenging the Big Three of America’s auto market.
Related
The Next Challenge for Waymo’s Self-Driving Cars Is a Michigan Winter
Autonomous cars need to be able to function anywhere normal cars can.
Related
Elon Musk Predicts Fully Driverless Cars Are Less Than Two Years Away
Tesla CEO believes that Level-5 full autonomy is less than two years away from being developed.
Related