Waymo upsizes debut debt deal to $5B to fund global expansion
What's the deal? Waymo, AlphabetDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s autonomous driving unit, has increased its inaugural private debt raise to $5 billion, tapping lenders to fund its robotaxi expansion. The deal, arranged with Goldman SachsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, priced at 5.25 percentage points over the benchmark rate and drew commitments from PimcoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Blackstone, and Sixth Street PartnersDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
The company had earlier sought to borrow more than $3 billion, BloombergDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → reported. The loan has been allocated and is expected to close soon.
Why now? Waymo is grappling with rising artificial intelligence and fleet costs as it rapidly builds out its driverless fleet. The raise marks a shift from equity financing: earlier this year it raised $16 billion at a $126 billion valuation.
What's the endgame? Waymo is expanding across US cities, including Las Vegas and Detroit, and plans to bring robotaxis to Japan and Singapore in coming years. It has set a goal of 1 million paid weekly rides this year.
The signal: At $5 billion, this ranks as the largest debt round on record among US robotics companies, topping a sample of 209 deals. It also reflects a broader trend of capital-intensive AI and autonomy ventures turning to private credit to fund infrastructure once bankrolled by equity.
Read more: Bloomberg, uk.finance.yahoo.com
Image credit: elisfkc
