What's going on?

Uber has raised $3.5 billion of funding from Saudi Arabia�s state-owned investment fund. The deal values the ride-hailing app at $62.5 billion and re-confirms its place as Silicon Valley�s most valuable private business.

What does this mean?

First of all, it�s an example of Saudi Arabia implementing the so-called Vision 2030 that 30-year old Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman outlined in April. The plan is to move Saudi Arabia away from a dependence on oil and towards a more diversified future (and investing in a company that might lead to significantly less car ownership fits that bill!). Secondly, it gives Uber more cash ammunition to keep spending on growth and developing future products (like, perhaps, an autonomous car).

Why should I care?

For the market: Will Uber ever go public? Uber is perhaps the best example of a company being able to raise a huge amount of investment without having to �go public� (e.g. be available for anyone to trade on a stock exchange). There are a bunch of implications, but a big one is that it changes the game for early-stage tech investors. By going public, such investors historically were able to cash out of their investments � it�s now harder for them to do so (here�s a McKinsey report on the subject). Also, it�s harder for normal investors to buy stock in such a high-growth tech company.

The bigger picture: The battle for the future of driving rages on. This deal was announced on the same day that Tesla founder Elon Musk predicted Apple would launch its own car by 2020. It�s probably no coincidence that Apple just invested $1bn in Chinese ride-hailing app (and Uber competitor) Didi Chuxing. Meanwhile, Toyota is in talks to buy a robot maker from Google and Google itself has partnered with Fiat Chrysler to develop self-driving cars. Being invested in the future of mobility is probably a smart move by the Saudis.