Gasgoo Munich- An autonomous driving startup nearly a decade in the making has drawn 14 cornerstone investors to snap up nearly half of its IPO shares. Among them are heavyweights like Mercedes-Benz, BYD, GIC, and BlackRock. This is Momenta, labeled the market's first "Physical AI" stock, set to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on July 8.
What exactly is the magic that has industrial capital and sovereign funds racing to place their bets?
According to filings with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Momenta kicked off its offering on June 29, closing on July 3. The company plans to sell about 19.94 million shares globally at 295.6 Hong Kong dollars each, aiming to raise roughly 5.89 billion Hong Kong dollars (excluding over-allotment options). A successful listing would make Momenta a key benchmark in the Physical AI sector.
14 Cornerstone Investors and a Glowing Financial Report
The standout feature of this IPO is undoubtedly the lineup of cornerstone investors. Fourteen institutions committed a combined $376 million, snapping up roughly 49.95% of the global offering.
On the industrial front, Mercedes-Benz subscribed for $25 million and BYD for $15 million. Both automakers are existing shareholders and deep partners, having invested as early as 2017. GigaDevice put in $6 million.
Among sovereign wealth funds and long-term capital, Singapore's GIC and Fidelity International led with $100 million each, followed by asset managers like BlackRock, Oaktree, and Franklin Templeton. On the domestic side, Gaoyi Asset Management, Boyu Capital, and China Asset Management each subscribed for $10 million.
Image Source: Momenta
The "gold standard" of the cornerstone lineup is self-evident, and Momenta's financials show equally strong momentum. From 2023 to 2025, revenue climbed from 743 million yuan to 2.41 billion yuan, representing a compound annual growth rate exceeding 80%. Licensing revenue skyrocketed from 23 million yuan to 968 million yuan — a 42-fold jump over three years — making it the fastest-growing segment.
Overall gross margins jumped from 17.5% to 71.6%, signaling strengthening pricing power for its tech licensing and solutions. By the end of 2025, cash reserves topped 10 billion yuan, providing a solid financial cushion.
Looking deeper, adjusted operating profit metrics have improved for consecutive periods, with R&D efficiency and scaling effects gradually kicking in. This is driven largely by the mass delivery of production vehicle solutions. Over 900,000 vehicles now carry Momenta's smart driving systems, and the resulting data influx has accelerated algorithm iteration while lowering unit costs. Momenta is steadily moving from the investment phase into a harvest period, with its revenue structure and margin levels laying a foundation for long-term profitability.
Net proceeds from the IPO, totaling about 5.62 billion Hong Kong dollars, are earmarked as follows: 60% for core R&D, including world model iteration, AI computing platforms, and data closed-loop toolchains; 20% for Robotaxi commercialization; 10% for expanding the mass-production vehicle business; and 10% for working capital.
This means the company will maintain high R&D intensity post-listing while accelerating commercial monetization, further cementing its first-mover advantage in the Physical AI race.
From Mass Production to Robotaxi: Momenta's Decade of Accumulation
At its core, Momenta's model is summarized externally as a flywheel with two legs.
The flywheel refers to using mass-market vehicle data to drive algorithm iteration — cars equipped with smart driving solutions accumulate massive data on real roads, feeding back into optimization. The "two legs" represent two monetization paths: providing L2+ assisted driving solutions for mass-produced models, and deploying L4-scale autonomous mobility and logistics services, led by Robotaxi.
In the mass-production sector, the core product Mpilot has been deployed in brands like SAIC's IM and BYD. The company established a joint venture with BYD called DIPAI to co-develop high-end LiDAR-assisted driving solutions.
Crucially, Momenta secured the designation for the smart driving system of the next-generation Mercedes-Benz S-Class, slated for mass production in 2027. This marks a validation of its technology against the world's most stringent automotive standards.
Based on sales figures for the 12 months ending February 28, 2026, Momenta ranks first among global independent intelligent driving solution providers. It holds a 65% share of China's third-party city NOA market, with its solutions installed in over 900,000 vehicles worldwide.
In the Robotaxi space, Momenta has partnered with Mercedes-Benz to launch a luxury fleet in Abu Dhabi, with operations set to begin in 2026. It is also collaborating with Enjoy Mobility, which obtained a license for fully unmanned operations in Shanghai in January 2026.
Image Source: Momenta
The company's self-developed R7 world model is viewed as a foundational model for the Physical AI era. It is capable of understanding physical laws and predicting world evolution, supporting multi-scenario deployment for passenger vehicles, Robotaxis, and Robovans.
Looking back, Momenta was founded in 2016, securing early investment from Blue Lake Capital, Sinovation Ventures, and Shunwei Capital. In 2017, Daimler (Mercedes-Benz's parent) led a strategic Series B round, becoming the first international automaker to invest in a Chinese autonomous driving startup. Since then, NIO Capital, SAIC, and General Motors have joined the cap table.
To date, cumulative public fundraising totals nearly $2 billion, with a post-money valuation of $5 billion following a Pre-IPO round in April 2026. Before listing, founder Cao Xudong and his concerted parties hold 16.21% of shares, while automakers including SAIC, GM, and Mercedes-Benz all hold stakes.
Momenta's current advantages center on three pillars. First is deep industrial integration — Mercedes-Benz represents the highest global safety standards, while BYD represents the largest mass-production capability. Both increasing their stakes at the IPO stage signals a relationship that has surpassed that of a typical supplier to evolve into strategic symbiosis.
Second is the first-mover advantage in market share and the data flywheel. A 65% share of the third-party NOA market and 900,000 installed units allow it to continuously harvest real-world driving data, driving world model iteration and forming a positive loop: more cars, more data, stronger algorithms.
Third is its positioning in the Physical AI track. The global Physical AI market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 47.2% from 2026 to 2032. Momenta's R7 world model is already seen by several automakers as infrastructure for next-gen smart driving — a logic similar to Microsoft investing in OpenAI to lock in a stake in large language model technology.
Of course, industry competition and uncertainties in commercialization remain. Yet, judging by the subscription heat and the cornerstone lineup on IPO day, the capital market has cast a clear vote of confidence in Momenta's long-term logic of "data flywheel plus world model." Its share price performance following the July 8 debut will be the first real test of that thesis.
