High-demand for disruptive services will significantly augment robotics funding in 2021

When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted everything and threw the economy into a whirlwind, numerous industries witnessed ever seen business growth. For instance, the proliferation of telehealth and rapid drug development enabled healthcare technologies to reach a new horizon. In a socially distanced world, robotics demand gained new heights as companies across almost every industry sought new ways to drive innovation. Now looking ahead to the new year, many tech purists expect that robotics trends will likely continue in 2021. The International Federation of Robotics forecasts that the global sales of robotic services will top US$55 million by 2023, up from US$17 billion in 2019.

Here is the top robotics funding raised in January/ February 2021.

UiPath

Amount Raised: US$750 Million

Transaction Type: Series F

Key Investor(s): Alkeon Capital and Coatue

Widely known as the RPA leader, UiPath raised a whopping amount of US$750 million in Series F funding round at a post-money valuation of US$35 billion. The round was co-led by existing investors Alkeon Capital and Coatue, with participation from other returning investors Altimeter Capital, Dragoneer, IVP, Sequoia, Tiger Global, and funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc.

Horizon Robotics

Amount Raised: US$ 400 Million

Transaction Type: Series C

Key Investor(s): Baillie Gifford, Contemporary Amperex Technology, CPE, YF Capital

Horizon Robotics, a developer of artificial intelligence chips for robots, closed US$400 million in a Series C2 financing round. The round was led by Baillie Gifford, YF Capital and battery-maker CATL. This fresh fund enables Horizon Robotics to stimulate its autonomous vehicle chips research and commercialization.

AMP Robotics

Amount Raised: US$55 Million

Transaction Type: Series B

Key Investor(s): XN

AMP Robotics is a developer of AI-based robotic systems that sort recyclable material at a fraction of the cost of the current technology. To scale its business operations and expand its business reach, the company bagged US$55 million in a Series C funding round. The round was led by XN, with participation from new investors Valor Equity Partners and GV as well as existing investors Sequoia, Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners, Congruent Ventures, and Closed Loop Partners.

OxeFit

Amount Raised: US$12.5 Million

Transaction Type: Series A

Key Investor(s): Lydia Partners

OxeFit, an artificial intelligence and advanced robotics platform that provides the smartest and most effective training system for safely improving businesses' performance, closed US$12.5 million in a Series A round. The financing round was led by Lydia Partners, with additional participation from pre-eminent professional athletes and sports medicine experts. OxeFit offers an integrated fitness ecosystem and aims to bring advanced robotics and AI to the world of strength training.

Bear Flag Robotics

Amount Raised: US$7.9 Million

Transaction Type: Seed Round

Key Investor(s): True Ventures

Bear Flag Robotics is an ag-tech company that develops autonomous technology for farm tractors to yield productivity and improve safety. To accelerate the development of self-driving tractors, the company raised US$7.9 million in a Seed round led by True Ventures, with participation from Graphene Ventures, AgFunder, D20 and Green Cow VC. Bear Flag Robotics' mission is to fortify global food production and lessen the cost of growing food through machine automation.

Energy Robotics

Amount Raised: €2 million (US$2.3 Million)

Transaction Type: Seed Round

Key Investor(s): Earlybird Venture Capital

The developer of software solutions for mobile inspection robots, Energy Robotics received €2 million, approximately US$2.3 million, in a seed funding round. The financing was led by Earlybird, alongside other prominent business angels. Headquartered in Darmstadt, Hessen, Germany, Energy Robotics has introduced one of the first commercially available software platforms for industrial applications that coalesces three essential intelligent control components of mobile autonomous robots: a hardware-independent robot operating system, cloud-based fleet management, and AI-powered data analysis.

Augmented Pixels

Amount Raised: US$2 Million

Transaction Type: Venture Round

Key Investor(s): –

Augmented Pixels is a Palo Alto, CA-based technology company that specializes in the field of augmented reality navigation and 3d mapping for mobile phones, drones, and robots. The company has closed a US$2 million in funding for the expansion of the team based in the United States and for innovative R&D activities. Augmented Pixels creates a world where drones and robots can see and navigate as humans do.