Goodyear’s $100 million venture fund adds Nova Labs to portfolio

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s $100 million venture capital arm, Goodyear Ventures, has made an unspecified investment in Nova Labs, a company involved in decentralized wireless communications that could play a role in the development of autonomous vehicles.

Formerly known as Helium — the name of Nova Labs’ Helium Network, a public, long-range wireless communications network that gathers data from the Internet of Things — San Francisco-based Nova completed a $200 million round of Series D funding on Wednesday, March 30. Goodyear Ventures reportedly was one of 10 participants in the funding round. Axios, which first reported the deal, said the funding indicates Nova Labs has a valuation of $1.2 billion.

The investment makes Nova Labs the 11th company in Goodyear Ventures’ portfolio, according to the fund’s web page.

“Nova Labs is revolutionizing the way enterprises connect to the internet, unlocking new levels of efficiency through ubiquitous coverage provided by the Helium Network,” said Abhijit Ganguly, managing director of Goodyear Ventures, in a statement. “At Goodyear we are committed to enabling mobility, and we can’t wait to see what we can accomplish with Nova Labs and the Helium Network.”

In announcing its investment, Goodyear said connected mobility will play a key role in future transportation and that the “investment allows Goodyear to collaborate on efficient and accessible connectivity solutions.”

Details of the investment were not disclosed, but Nova Labs COO Frank Mong also confirmed Goodyear’s participation in the transaction via Goodyear’s announcement.

“We are grateful to companies like Goodyear who recognize the power of a global decentralized wireless network in boosting efficiency and driving innovation,” Mong said. “We are proud to have the support of Goodyear Ventures as we continue to pioneer decentralization across wireless protocols and are excited to explore ways to welcome them to the Helium ecosystem as an enterprise customer.”

In recent years, Goodyear has internally invested millions in research and development for smart tires with sensors and communications technology. It has said it intends to be a major player in what it sees as an important future market for autonomous vehicles.

The big tiremaker, which employs about 72,000 people in 23 countries, including at its two “Innovation Centers” conducting research and development in Akron and Luxembourg, has said it expects to focus its technical development efforts exclusively on technology to be used in tires for electric and autonomous vehicles by 2040.

In early 2020, Goodyear announced it was forming Goodyear Ventures, seeding it with $100 million and charging it with making investments in emerging technologies aimed at the transportation and mobility sectors.