BMW i Ventures announces 300 million USD fund to finance AI startups reshaping the automotive ecosystem

BMW i Ventures launched its third fund, putting 300 million USD behind a clear premise: that AI will fundamentally reshape how the automotive industry operates and creates value across its entire ecosystem.

Fully backed by the BMW Group, Fund III will focus on physical AI, agentic AI, industrial software, manufacturing technologies, supply chain technologies and advanced materials. The fund will invest across North America and Europe, from Seed through Series B. The launch brings BMW i Ventures’ total capital under management to $1.1 billion.

“With BMW i Ventures, we are investing in technologies that will shape the future of our industry. Our corporate venture capital activities play a key role in our innovation strategy, complementing our internal R&D and building strategic partnerships across the entire automotive value chain”, said Oliver Zipse, CEO of BMW Group. “BMW i Ventures is launching the third fund at the perfect time: AI has shown its tremendous potential to transform products, operations, and entire value chains. Through BMW i Ventures and Fund III, we are best prepared to leverage these opportunities: We can anticipate shifts early, act quickly and efficiently on innovations, and remain at the forefront of our industry.”

AI as Operating Layer of the Automotive World

BMW i Ventures will focus on agentic AI, AI-native enterprise applications that automate complex workflows in industrial environments, and physical AI that enables robots and autonomous machines to perceive, plan and act safely in the real world. As AI unlocks step-function improvements in productivity, decision-making and speed of execution, the fund will back innovations across the automotive value chain in automation, engineering, and manufacturing, from highly specific production optimization to platforms that enable connected and intelligent operations across industrial networks.

“With Fund III, we’re backing the founders who are turning AI into an industrial advantage, on the factory floor, in logistics networks and across global supply chains,” said Marcus Behrendt, Managing Partner at BMW i Ventures. “The new fund sharpens our focus for a world where AI-native software, robotics, and materials innovation will define the next generation of suppliers.”

“AI is quickly becoming part of the operating system of the modern enterprise,” added Kasper Sage, Managing Partner at BMW i Ventures. “We’re particularly interested in AI that can execute workflows end-to-end, driving real ROI through autonomous systems. That’s where productivity gains have real business impact.”