Singapore's Grab to invest $60 million in remote driving firm Vay

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Singapore's Grab to invest $60 million in remote driving firm Vay
(Reuters) -Grab Holdings will invest $60 million in remote driving firm ​Vay Technology, the Singaporean firm said ‌on Monday, sending its shares up more than 6% ‌in premarket trading.

The company is trying to leverage its ride-hailing platform to tap into autonomous vehicles, which are largely seen as the future ⁠of mobility and a ‌potential disruptive force for companies such as Grab and Uber.

"The future of ‍mobility in Southeast Asia will be a hybrid model that relies on the expertise of our driver-partners alongside ​autonomous vehicles and remote driving services," ‌Grab CEO Anthony Tan said.

If Vay hits certain milestones, Grab said it would invest $350 million more within the first year.

The milestones include consumer revenue, U.S. cities covered, ⁠technology and safety standards, ​and regulatory approvals for operating ​in additional U.S. cities.

Vay relies on "teledrivers" to steer its ‍cars to ⁠a potential customer, who can then self-drive the vehicle.

The company in January last ⁠year launched its first commercial service in Las Vegas.

(‌Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing ‌by Anil D'Silva)

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