LIDAR startup Luminar is going public via ‘reverse merger’
Luminar, a Florida-based startup that makes LIDAR sensors and other components essential for autonomous driving technology, is the latest transportation company to go public via a “reverse merger” with a special acquisition company, or SPAC.
The company announced Monday that it was merging with Gores Metropoulos, a so-called “blank check” company sponsored by an affiliate of The Gores Group, a global investment firm. As a result, Luminar will become a publicly traded company listed on NASDAQ under the new ticker “LAZR.” The Gores Group has been called “the king of SPACs” for the number of reverse mergers it has pulled off.
The combined company will have an “implied pro forma enterprise value” of approximately $2.9 billion and an equity value of $3.4 billion at closing. Luminar will receive an immediate investment of $170 million led by Alec Gores, Van Tuyl Companies, Peter Thiel, Volvo Cars Tech Fund, Crescent Cove, Moore Strategic Ventures, Nick & Jill Woodman and VectoIQ.
Unlike conventional initial public offerings, reverse mergers can be completed in a matter of months. Some SPACs raise money from investors without a detailed business plan. The sole purpose of these blank check companies is to find another company with which to merge. If they can’t do it within two years, they often fold and investors get their money back.
The benefits of SPACs to retail investors is thought to be minimal, experts say, because sponsors of blank check companies are frequently able to buy substantial stakes in the business they merge with at minimal cost.
Reverse mergers are all the rage with futuristic transportation companies. The soaring share price of Tesla — currently trading at around $2,000 a share — is thought to have fueled some of the frenzy. Hydrogen trucking company Nikola, electric pickup truck Lordstown, EV startup Fisker, and electric minivan company Canoo are just a few of the companies to cash in on a sudden funding frenzy in the electric vehicle startup space, which has seen fresh money go to Karma Automotive, China’s Li Auto and XPeng, and others.
Luminar was founded in 2012 and counts among its backers Peter Thiel and Volvo, which earlier this year said it will begin using Luminar technology to power autonomous driving in its cars beginning in 2022. Luminar also supplies Audi and the Toyota Research Institute. LIDAR, the laser sensor that sends millions of laser points out per second and measures how long they take to bounce back, is seen as a key ingredient to autonomous driving.
Luminar, a Florida-based startup that makes LIDAR sensors and other components essential for autonomous driving technology, is the latest transportation company to go public via a “reverse merger” with a special acquisition company, or SPAC. The company announced Monday that it was merging with Gores Metropoulos, a so-called “blank check”…
Recent Posts
- Quordle today – hints and answers for Sunday, May 19 (game #846)
- Blue Origin’s first crewed launch since 2022: Where to watch
- This modder proves everything’s better with a GBA SP screen attached
- Mobile industry is quietly preparing for the biggest change to your smartphone in a decade — iSIM will hasten the end of SIM cards and allow networks to preload plans on devices
- Replacing the OLED iPad Pro’s battery is easier than ever
Archives
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- December 2011