Alpha JWC Leads Investment in Venti, Presents its Hypothesis in Autonomous Technology

Autonomous technology development startup for logistics Venti Technologies has received initial funding of $8 million or around 115,9 billion rupiah. This funding round was led by two leading VCs, namely LDV Partners and Alpha JWC Ventures.

Not only that, it also announced the joining of Partners at LDV Partners Lake Dai and Co-founder & General Partner Alpha JWC Ventures Chandra Tjan to the board of directors, which now totals five people.

Venti Founder & CEO Heidi Wyle said this funding will be used to support the development of an AI-based logistics autonomous vehicle system. This includes strengthening deals with new and existing customers. One of them is the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) Corporation Limited which currently manages 60 ports.

"Through this investment, we are looking to scale up our operations and business globally, where we are eyeing growth opportunities in Asia, Europe and the United States," Wyle said in a statement.

Founded in 2018, Venti Technologies develops autonomous technology for transportation, warehousing, to hub logistics. Currently, Venti's autonomous products have been used across various sectors in Asia, ranging from industrial estates, logistics, residential, tourist areas, to the global logistics market.

Chandra Tjan said, Venti is the first investment portfolio in autonomous vehicles at Alpha JWC Ventures. It is committed to continue to find funder great at building a company. Then, yes, I believe that Venti will become game changer and the first in Asia.

"Founder, Venti's vision, products and track record so far have been excellent. We are excited to work with Venti to revolutionize the autonomous vehicle industry and achieve success on a global scale," said Chandra.

Investment hypothesis

Alpha JWC's investment in Venti marks the first step into autonomous technology. Partner at Alpha JWC Ventures Eko Kurniadi said Venti is one of the few players whose technology is used commercially in Asia, and the first in Southeast Asia.

Another reason that drives Alpha JWC to invest is the outstanding track record of founder Venti, namely Heidi Wyle who is known as a leader in the technology and AI industry and Daniela Rus who is a pioneer in autonomous technology and AI in the global.

Furthermore, Eko assessed that the use of autonomous vehicles is considered to be able to provide added value to the logistics industry, such as saving transportation costs, increasing vehicle use, and increasing the level of safety for motorists. Therefore, autonomous vehicles are considered suitable to be marketed to industries with high logistics costs.

"Moreover, the market autonomous mobility for the logistics industry, supply chain leaders, and transport of mobile goods is very promising with a potential market value of $200 billion in the world," he explained in a separate statement to DailySocial.

Take Singapore for example, which has strict regulations on the use of heavy equipment. This condition makes the labor cost there very high. The use of autonomous vehicles allows industry players in Singapore to reduce dependence on labor.

Venti partnered with the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) Corporation Limited to provide a prime mover to automate the transport of distribution containers.

Eko revealed that currently Singapore is Venti's main market in Southeast Asia, as well as China. However, his party did not turn a blind eye to the opportunities and possibilities of expansion into Indonesia. As an archipelagic country with high logistics costs, Indonesia is also considered a potential market for movable goods.

Expansion into Indonesia allows players in logistics, warehousing and related industries that use heavy equipment to gain significant benefits from the use of autonomous vehicles. "We believe Indonesia will be a big market for Venti because their technology solutions can be applied in many industries."

Market size reaches $3,39 billion

In Asia Pacific, the size of the autonomous vehicle market in 2020 is estimated to have reached $3,39 billion and will grow (CAGR) 13% from 2021 to 2028. In published research reports Grand View Research It also highlights the use of autonomous machines to support logistics and manufacturing businesses. With the effectiveness of the transportation function it has, the use of automatic machines is considered to reduce costs and the risk of product damage.