Middlesex-based BotsAndUs has secured around €5.3 million, including an equity funding round led by Kindred Capital and Capnamic Ventures, with angel investors from the UK and the US also participating in the round. The company was also awarded funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme as well as Innovate UK.
BotsAndUs (2015) focuses on creating robots that work alongside people in places such as large retail stores, shopping centres, airports, office buildings, offering 24/7 customer service and automating on site data collection and analytics. The data the robots collect, and tasks they automate, enable clients to make informed business decisions that drive efficiency, reduce costs and increase revenues. Current clients include MediaMarktSaturn, Heathrow Airport, British Airways and dnata, among others.
With the newly invested capital, BotsAndUs intends to grow the team, accelerate robot deployments, and explore new products and services in response to the significant increase in the demand for automation. The company aims to accelerate deployment of their automation solutions across indoor, dynamic spaces – these are unstructured environments where people traffic and excessive noise normally create challenges for autonomous robots.
Andrei Danescu, CEO at BotsAndUs, commented: “We are in a great position to accelerate achieving our mission and liberate businesses from dull, repetitive and now even dangerous work, so their employees can focus on the things that bring the most value. We are thrilled to have such trusted and experienced investors join our cause and support the next stage of our growth. The demand for automation and robotics has seen a significant raise driven by the current global events and we’re in the best position to respond to it.”
Russell Buckley, Partner at Kindred Capital said, “We’ve been following BotsAndUs’ progress over the past few years and have been very impressed with the founders’ ambition, innovative approach and ability to build a fantastic team around their mission. Their pioneering robotics and AI products are at the forefront of a much needed next wave of automation – bringing robots out of factories and warehouses so they can make an impact on businesses operating in a variety of indoor, crowded, public spaces.”
Jorg Binnenbrucker, Partner at Capnamic Ventures also commented: “The founders have a truly bold vision with the potential for massive impact. They have gathered great talent and this amazing team is equipped with all the necessary skills to develop and commercialise their innovative technology to gather and analyse real-time data in dynamic public spaces. We are very excited to support BotsAndUs in establishing and nurturing partnerships with Europe’s biggest brands.”