On May 17, Leekr Technology, a chassis-by-wire system solutions provider, announced its completion of A and A+ rounds of financing, securing a cumulative amount of nearly RMB 200 million ($29.56 million). Series A financing was jointly led by Sinovation Ventures and Vision Plus Capital, with additional participation from FTZ Fund, the Lingang New Area Science and Technology Innovation Fund, and Unity Ventures. Series A+ financing was led by Harvest Fund, with Yiqilihe serving as a co-investor. Existing shareholders Vision Plus Capital, FTZ Fund, and Lingang New Area Science and Technology Innovation Fund increased their investment. ZHANG Ying, Partner of Sinovation Ventures, will take a board seat of LeeKr Technology.
The newly acquired funds are mainly to be used for the construction of Phase I & II intelligent manufacturing base and investment in R&D of the next generation of chassis-by-wire systems. Also, the funds are intended to guarantee the large-scale delivery of the company’s decoupled electronic brake booster (DHB) and integrated intelligent brake system (IHB) in 2022.
ZHOU Jiajun, Director of Sinovation Ventures, said: “There is an opportunity to substitute imported EV chassis with homegrown products, yet the early starters haven’t held a commanding lead over newcomers. Leekr’s founding team presents a strong competitive edge in their interdisciplinary background. On the one hand, with the advantage of the cross-disciplinary background of its founding team, LeeKr has the ability of independent R&D in core components. On the other hand, its abundant resource and credible endorsement have become the designated supplier for several representative automobile manufacturers. We believe that LeeKr will become a dark horse in the industry.”
Founded in 2021, Leekr is committed to providing safe, efficient, and intelligent solutions for chassis-by-wire systems to auto companies and industrial partners. With decades of experience in the industry, the founding team has best-in-class technology and sharp industry insights and rich industry resources, and strong commercialization capabilities. Especially, the R&D team members come from the top global system suppliers' backgrounds, such as Bosch, ZF Friedrichshafen, Continental, and Huawei, and have rich experience in the mass production of projects. Leekr is a rare team with comprehensive chassis-by-wire platform development, application, and commercialization capabilities.
LeeKr’s DHBs and IHBs have secured a total of 9 projects from several leading Chinese automakers, covering ICV and NEV. With winter tests completed in March, it will achieve the large-scale mass production of its first auto project in mid-2022.
HUI Zhifeng, the founder and CEO of LeeKr, said: “I am honored that customers and investors recognize our team caliber and R&D capabilities. We will continually roll out better chassis-by-wire products in line with market demand, and form in-depth partnerships with auto companies in emerging fields such as new energy vehicles and autonomous driving.