Bloomberg: Xiaomi is considering participating in the latest round of financing for Black Sesame Smart Technology

According to Bloomberg, people familiar with the matter revealed that Xiaomi is considering participating in the latest round of financing of Heizhima Intelligent Technology.

People familiar with the matter said that this round of financing values ​​Heizhima at up to $1.5 billion. Investors in the previous round of financing included Tencent. Heizhima is considering an IPO on the Science and Technology Innovation Board as early as next year, and plans to conduct at least one round of financing before listing on the Science and Technology Innovation Board.

Xiaomi has invested billions of dollars in dozens of startups to build its smartphone ecosystem, but the deal with Black Sesame will mark Xiaomi's latest move in the automotive sector since it announced its plan to build a car. According to public information, Black Sesame's clients include automotive industry companies such as Bosch, SAIC Motor and BYD.

Details such as the size of the financing and valuation could change, while discussions about an IPO are at an early stage and Black Sesame may decide not to seek a listing, the people said.

Founded in 2016, Heizhima is a company that focuses on visual perception technology and independent IP chip development. The Huashan No. 1 automotive-grade chip developed by the company was first launched in August 2019, and surpassed the world's leading similar chips in key performance indicators. On June 15, 2020, the second automotive-grade intelligent driving perception chip, Huashan No. 2, was officially released.