Self-driving truck startup Einride plans to go public via a SPAC

Einride said on Wednesday it plans to go public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, just six weeks after the Swedish electric and autonomous truck startup raised $100 million from investors. The SPAC merger with Legato Merger Corp values ​​Einride at $1.8 billion in pre-money equity, according to the companies.

The transaction is expected to generate approximately $219 million in gross proceeds, a figure that does not take into account any redemption of Legato’s common shares. The company is also seeking up to $100 million in private investment in public equity capital (PIPE).

The merger is expected to close in the first half of 2026, with Einride making its debut on the New York Stock Exchange.

Einride was founded in 2016 with an ambition to transform the shipping industry, first with electric trucks, then with autonomous electric pods – vehicles that lack a steering wheel or pedals designed for autonomous driving. The company, which appointed Rosebet Charlie as its new CEO earlier this year, is trying to expand three business lines: large electric platforms, self-driving pod-like trucks that navigate fixed routes, and planning software designed for shippers.

Einred has had some success expanding outside Sweden. It operates a fleet of 200 heavy electric trucks in Europe, North America and the UAE for companies such as Heineken, PepsiCo, Carlsberg Sweden and DP World. The company has made some progress with its pod-like self-driving trucks with customers including Apotea in Sweden and GE Appliances in the US.

Einride, which also has its US headquarters in Austin, Texas, revealed in its announcement that it has a current annual recurring revenue run rate (ARR) of approximately US$45 million and a total contract base of US$65 million ARR from signed customer contracts.

Charlie said at the time that the company’s $100 million raise, announced in October, was intended to help the company scale with its customer base and accelerate the deployment of its autonomous charging technology.

Formerly Ainred Raised $500 million In 2022 in a Series C equity and debt round. The $200 million equity-based portion came from backers including Northzone, EQT Ventures, Temasek, Swedish pension fund AMF, Polar Structure and Norsken VC. It also secured $300 million in financing led by Barclays Europe. The $100 million raise in October included existing investor EQT Ventures and quantum computing company IonQ.

Einride joins other self-driving vehicle companies that have sought SPAC mergers in recent years to secure additional financing.

And gone is Aurora, which has launched a commercial operation of self-driving trucks (with a human observer on board). Public via SPAC merger Valued at $13 billion in 2021. Self-driving truck startup Kodiak AI takes first place Plumber’s way to the general market earlier this year.