Ghost Locomotion raises $100m in financing round

US-based self-driving vehicle start-up Ghost Locomotion has raised a total of $100m in a Series D financing round.

The company’s existing investors, Sutter Hill Ventures and Founders Fund, participated in the round, as did investment manager Coatue.

Ghost Locomotion plans to use the funding to expedite the development of an autonomous driving system that features crash prevention technology.

The start-up, founded in 2017, has been working on anti-collision technology that can detect and avoid any obstacle on a road.

Unlike existing systems, Ghost Locomotion’s system skips the process of recognising an obstacle in order to avoid it.

The solution instead uses artificial intelligence (AI) and physics to track moving objects and prevent the car from colliding with incoming hazards.

Ghost Locomotion CEO John Hayes said: “Crash prevention is the single most important problem in driving. Automotive safety innovation has historically focused on alleviating the effects of crashes.

“Now we finally have the technology to prevent crashes before they occur, the breakthrough needed to bring safe self-driving to our highways.”

Ghost Locomotion is currently testing its autonomous driving system in California and aims to launch the product next year.

The company has also appointed Jacqueline Glassman, a former chief counsel and acting administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), as its general counsel.

Ms Glassman said: “For decades, I have been involved in helping to reduce the risk of crashes and improve road safety.

“I am thrilled to continue that mission at Ghost by helping advance its unique approach to crash prevention, which will ultimately make safe self-driving available on a mass scale.

“As we bring Ghost’s technology to market, we can start saving lives within years, not decades.”