Self-driving technology company Aurora Innovation was hoping to raise hundreds of millions in additional capital as it races toward a driverless commercial launch by the end of 2024. The company, which had arranged to sell up to $420m worth of shares, exceeded its goal and raised $483m (£378m).

The newly raised funds come a little over a year since Aurora completed a capital raise of $820 million from a public and concurrent private offering of its stock, says Tech Crunch.

“This raise is a testament to investors’ confidence in Aurora’s ability to be a company for the long term, prompted by a recent Analyst Day where investors experienced driverless truck rides, and recent milestones that underscore the strength of our partner ecosystem to deploy at scale,” company spokesperson Rachel Chibidakis told TechCrunch in an email.

Aurora made its public debut through a special purpose acquisition merger in 2021, and its stock has traded as high as $13.12 on opening day. Aurora shares closed Friday at $3.84. Shares rose more than 2% in after-hours trading.

Aurora is pursuing a driver-as-a-service model, wherein carriers purchase trucks with the Aurora Driver tech on board and then offer their services via those trucks to shippers. But the company is planning to go to market as a carrier, offering up to 20 autonomous Paccar and Volvo trucks to shippers at the end of this year.

Aurora expected the net proceeds from the sale to bring in about $405m, or around $466m “if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional shares in full,” after deducting the usual discounts, commissions and offering expenses, per an updated filing. The deal closed Friday afternoon pushed the raise to $483 million.

(Pic – Aurora Innovation)