Cash aside, how does venture capital help start-ups?

Recent years have seen OEMs scrambling to secure expertise in unfamiliar territories such as autonomous driving software, connectivity and sensor technology. In most cases, this has led to either the acquisition of – or significant investment in – early stage start-up companies.

But before vehicle manufactures will consider spending their own valuable cash on these specialised players, venture capital firms (VCs) are often required to nurture these businesses to a point of mass-market readiness.