Wejo Partners with Microsoft, Palantir & Sompo

Wejo Announces Strategic Partnerships to Enhance Connected Vehicle Data Capabilities

Wejo, a startup specializing in connected vehicle data, has revealed new collaborations with industry leaders including Microsoft, Palantir, and Sompo Holdings. These partnerships are designed to bolster the company’s capacity for gathering, storing, and analyzing data originating from a vast network of connected vehicles globally.

Going Public and Securing Funding

This announcement arrives on the heels of Wejo’s plans to become a publicly listed company through a merger with Virtuoso Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company. The anticipated completion of this merger is slated for later this year. A combined investment of $25 million from Microsoft and Sompo, alongside existing commitments from GM and Palantir, elevates Wejo’s total PIPE financing to $125 million.

Expanding into the Asia-Pacific Region

Palantir had previously made a strategic investment in Wejo. Furthermore, a joint venture established in 2019 between the software developer and insurance provider Sompo is now partnering with Wejo. This collaboration will enable the startup to acquire connected vehicle data within Japan, potentially extending its reach throughout the broader Asia-Pacific region.

Currently, the majority – 95% – of Wejo’s data originates from the U.S., although the company does have active vehicles operating in Korea, as stated by Richard Barlow, Wejo’s founder and CEO. Sompo will utilize the Palantir Foundry data and analytics platform to analyze the connected vehicle data provided by Wejo.

Significant Data Volume and Platform Growth

“A substantial proportion of vehicles sold worldwide today possess connectivity capabilities, presenting a considerable opportunity,” Barlow explained to TechCrunch. “Our platform currently supports 11 million live vehicles from a potential base of approximately 50 million. We maintain engagements with over 17 original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and process 16 billion data points daily, peaking at around 414,000 data points per second. This explains our enthusiasm for the backing of Microsoft and our migration to their Azure cloud platform.”

Data Coverage and Applications

Wejo’s partnerships with automakers such as GM, Daimler, and Hyundai allow it to monitor 7% of all vehicles in New York, 6% in California, and 20% in Detroit. The company offers businesses, developers, and governments access to raw, anonymized data collected with vehicle owner consent. Alternatively, it can provide data analytics services, leveraging the capabilities of its partnership with Microsoft.

“Microsoft has developed a compelling solution that allows us to harness their machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities to deliver even more advanced products to OEMs and industries seeking to utilize connected vehicle data,” Barlow noted. “The processing power of Microsoft’s Azure will significantly accelerate our business operations.”

Potential Use Cases and Future Outlook

According to Wejo, initial applications for this data may include traffic management solutions, remote vehicle diagnostics, integrated payment systems, targeted advertising, retail optimization, and logistics improvements. Discussions are also underway regarding the integration of Wejo’s data with Microsoft’s mapping solutions. Barlow anticipates increased interest from mapping companies and insurance providers.

Collision Data and Predictive Analytics

“We have recorded 11 million instances of vehicles interacting with each other, and we receive real-time data from both vehicles involved,” Barlow stated. “This allows us to proactively understand the characteristics and behaviors preceding and following a collision or vehicle interaction.”

Wejo is capable of reconstructing car crash events, capturing details such as braking force, airbag deployment, impact speed, and sensor damage. This data can be shared with insurers to expedite claims processing, improve repair accuracy, and enhance the overall recovery process.

Value for Autonomous Technology Development

Having collected data on human driving behaviors across a diverse range of conditions for the past seven years, Wejo has become a valuable partner for companies engaged in the development of autonomous vehicle technology.

Correction: A previous iteration of this article incorrectly stated Wejo processes 40,000 data points per second; the accurate figure is 414,000.