Einride, a Swedish electric and autonomous truck startup, announced its plans to go public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) just six weeks after raising $100 million from investors. The SPAC merger with Legato Merger Corp. values Einride at $1.8 billion in pre-money equity.
The deal is expected to generate approximately $219 million in gross proceeds, excluding any redemption of Legato’s public shares. Additionally, Einride is seeking up to $100 million in private investment in public equity (PIPE) capital. The merger is anticipated to close in the first half of 2026, with Einride making its debut on the New York Stock Exchange.
Founded in 2016, Einride aims to revolutionize the freight industry by introducing electric trucks and autonomous electric pods. These autonomous vehicles are designed without a steering wheel or pedals for self-driving capabilities. Under the leadership of new CEO Roozbeh Charli, Einride has been focusing on scaling its three main business lines: electric big rigs, autonomous pod-like trucks for fixed routes, and planning software for shippers.
Einride has successfully expanded beyond Sweden, operating a fleet of 200 heavy-duty electric trucks in Europe, North America, and the UAE for major companies like Heineken, PepsiCo, Carlsberg Sweden, and DP World. The company has also made strides with its autonomous pod-like trucks, serving customers such as Apotea in Sweden and GE Appliances in the United States.
With a U.S. headquarters in Austin, Texas, Einride disclosed that it currently has an annual recurring revenue (ARR) run rate of approximately $45 million and a total contracted base of $65 million ARR from signed customer contracts.
The company’s recent $100 million funding round, announced in October, was intended to support scaling operations with its customer base and accelerating the deployment of its autonomous freight technology. Einride previously raised $500 million in 2022 through a Series C round of equity and debt funding. Notable investors include Northzone, EQT Ventures, Temasek, Swedish pension fund AMF, Polar Structure, and Norrsken VC. Einride also secured $300 million in debt funding led by Barclays Europe, with existing investor EQT Ventures and quantum computing company IonQ participating in the recent funding round.
Einride joins other autonomous vehicle companies that have pursued SPAC mergers to secure additional funding. Aurora, which launched a commercial self-driving trucks operation, went public through a SPAC merger valued at $13 billion in 2021. Similarly, self-driving trucks startup Kodiak AI also took the SPAC route to the public market earlier this year.
With its innovative approach to electric and autonomous trucks, Einride is poised to make a significant impact in the freight industry as it prepares to go public and continue its growth trajectory.
