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The investment arm of Saudi family-owned business Abdul Latif Jameel has invested an undisclosed amount of money in American air taxi start-up up Joby Aviation.
Jameel Investment Management Company (JIMCO) confirmed that it has participated in a Series C funding round for the California-based firm, which seeks to provide piloted, all-electric air taxi services to commuters in the Middle East and around the world.
The start-up raised $590 million in its latest investment round, bringing the total funding to $720 million.
“JIMCO is not in a position to share the amount of the investment it made in the start-up,” a company spokesperson told Zawya, adding that the Saudi investment arm joined other investors in Joby’s latest funding round, such as Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), Baillie Gifford, SPARX Group, Intel Capital, Capricorn Investment Group, JetBlue Technology Ventures, 8VC, Toyota AI Ventures and AME Cloud Ventures.
Established 75 years ago in Saudi Arabia, Abdul Latif Jameel is an operator and investor in multiple sectors, including automotive and energy, with a presence in over 30 countries.
“The move is in line with Abdul Latif Jameel’s strategy of making high-stakes investments in the future of mobility,” JIMCO said in a statement.
“Air taxi service is still in the early stages of commercialisation, but one that has the potential to completely transform the future of mobility. We are excited to be a part of this new chapter for the sector, bringing fast, affordable and zero-emissions air mobility to Saudi Arabia and the wider MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region,” said Hassan Jameel, Deputy President and Vice Chairman of Abdul Latif Jameel.
(Writing by Nada Al Rifai; editing by Cleofe Maceda)
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© ZAWYA 2020
