(Reuters) - U.S. chip designer Nvidia ( NVDA ) has signed a letter of intent for a possible $500 million investment in the next funding round at Britain's Wayve, the autonomous driving technology group said on Thursday.

The development comes after Britain and the United States signed a technology pact aimed at boosting ties in artificial intelligence and other fields.

Founded in 2017, Wayve raised over $1 billion last year, led by SoftBank Group and supported by Nvidia ( NVDA ). Ride-hailing platform Uber ( UBER ) had also made a separate investment in the firm in 2024, for an undisclosed sum.

Wayve's technology, unlike conventional systems that rely on detailed digital maps and coding, uses machine learning with camera sensors mounted on the vehicles to learn from traffic patterns and driver behaviour.

Its autonomous driving platforms have been powered by a partnership with Nvidia ( NVDA ), whose chips are now bolstering a global AI boom.

The London-based Wayve currently operates in Britain and the U.S. and has been expanding testing and development to wider markets like Germany and Japan.

On Thursday, Nvidia ( NVDA ) had also pledged 2 billion pounds ($2.70 billion) in investments in the British AI startup ecosystem.

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