(Yicai Global) July 20 -- Chinese autopilot startup WeRide has completed its first acquisition, MoonX.AI, to expand into autonomous trucking.

A team of 50 engineers from MoonX.AI will join WeRide, the Guangzhou-based company said in a statement today.

The deal should help the buyer accelerate its development in technology, product innovation, commercial application, and talent pool, it added.

The move comes with a new appointment. Yang Qingxiong, founder and chief executive of MoonX.AI, will be in charge of WeRide’s product innovation and oversee the firm’s research institute. Before establishing the trucking company in 2018, he served as a senior director of autonomous driving at ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing.

Shenzhen-based MoonX.AI has completed several rounds of financing. The earliest CNY50 million (USD7.7 million) one was wrapped up in 2018, led by conglomerate Legend Holdings' venture capital arm Legend Star.

MoonX.AI operates a fleet of more than 20 self-driving passenger vehicles and trucks, and has completed open road tests in Shenzhen, Xiamen, and Quanzhou. It has formed strategic partnerships with Xiamen Public Transport Group, and fresh fruit chain store Pagoda.

"With our shared vision and belief in autonomous driving and the continued expansion of our engineering team, WeRide is committed to accelerating the commercialization of driverless technology and leading the industry to achieve further innovations and breakthroughs," said CEO Tony Han.

Founded in 2017, WeRide started offering robotaxi services in southern China's Guangzhou in November 2019. Last month, the company secured USD310 million in its Series C round of financing, with a valuation of USD3.3 billion.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi