Bird raises $275 million Series D round at a $2.5 billion valuation

Bird has closed a $275 million Series D round led by CDPQ and Sequoia Capital, Bird CEO Travis VanderZanden announced at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco today. The round values Bird at a $2.5 billion pre-money valuation, according to sources familiar with the round. This round comes a few months after TechCrunch reported Bird was looking to raise a Series D round at a $2.5 billion valuation led by Sequoia.

"Nearly a year ago, we recognized that the world was changing," Bird CEO and founder Travis VanderZanden said in a statement ahead of Disrupt. "Gone are the days when top line growth was the leading KPI for emerging companies. Positive unit economics is the new goal line. As a result, we pivoted from growth to unit economics as the top priority for the company. Now with the best unit economics in the industry, new Bird investors such as CDPQ see that we are paving the road for a long term sustainable and healthy business."

Sequoia Capital previously led Bird's $300 million Series C round back in June, with Roelof Botha joining Bird's board at the time. Bird plans to use the funding to continue research and development for its variety of vehicles.

"The team at Bird exemplifies grit and has embraced a laser focus on the key drivers of unit economics in a complex business," Sequoia Capital partner and Bird board member Roelof Botha said in a statement. "The degree to which they were devoted to and accomplished strong contribution margins in a compressed timeline is rare for a company so early on in its development. We are thrilled to strengthen our commitment to Bird and look forward to seeing continued progress on their path to profitability."

In July, Bird CEO Travis VanderZanden said Bird has positive unit economics on its new Bird Zero scooters, which accounts for more than 75% of its fleet. But based on one of the images VanderZanden tweeted, it seems that figure is based on a period of four weeks in the summer when scooter ridership is likely higher.

The month before, Bird acquired Scoot in a deal worth less than $25 million. That acquisition marked Bird's first expansion into traditional bicycles and mopeds. Shortly before that, Bird unveiled a two-seater hybrid bike/moped vehicle called the Bird Cruiser. In addition to offering shared vehicles, Bird is also selling scooters directly to consumers. Prior to this round, Bird had raised more than $400 million in funding and reached a valuation of $2 billion last June.

I'm chatted with VanderZanden at TechCrunch Disrupt SF. Check out the interview below.