Yamaha Motor announces $100m 10-year investment fund
A second Yamaha Motor Exploratory Fund has been announced, with $100 million being allocated over a period of 10 years in the US.
Yamaha has announced a new investment fund in the US, following on from its first fund in 2018.
Yamaha set up Yamaha Motor Ventures (YMV) in Silicon Valley back in 2015, and it is YMV which is responsible for seeking out the companies which will benefit from Yamaha Motor’s new investment fund.
In total, $100 million USD has been put up for investment by Yamaha Motor as part of its new Yamaha Motor Exploratory Fund, L.P. II, which follows on from the first Exploratory Fund back in 2018.
Yamaha says “this fund is dedicated for exploring technologies and opportunities, aimed at new business domain expansion and securing competitive advantages.”
The establishment of the second fund is part of Yamaha’s “Medium Term Management Plan” which lasts from 2022 until 2024, and of which part of the objective is to develop smaller businesses into what Yamaha calls “core businesses” that will help to secure the aforementioned “competitive advantages” for Yamaha.
The second Yamaha Motor Exploratory Fund was established in February 2023, and will last for 10 years, making it a much more long-term project than the first fund.
Yamaha says its target businesses for investment are “Startups with innovative technologies and ample business growth potential in the fields of transportation, robotics, data/AI, fintech/insurtech, and digital health and wellness.”
Exactly what will come of the new investment fund from Yamaha is of course as yet unclear, although its pursuit of “data/AI” perhaps indicates its interest in developing ‘self-driving’ technology for its motorcycles via this fund.
