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Digital manufacturing startup Bright Machines raises $132 million in new funding

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Bright Machines, a startup which describes itself as “an innovator in software-defined manufacturing”, has raised $132 million in debt and Series B equity funding.

The equity portion of the funding, worth $100 million, was led by Eclipse Ventures. The debt portion of the funding, worth $32 million, was led by Silicon Valley Bank, and Hercules Capital.

Bright Machines intends to use the funds to accelerate the company’s growth, which includes continued expansion into high-demand industry verticals, and the development of new software and service offerings to complement its existing portfolio of products. [Read more…] about Digital manufacturing startup Bright Machines raises $132 million in new funding

Veo Robotics named in CB Insights’ advanced manufacturing top 50

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Business research website CB Insights has named Veo Robotics, the Waltham-based industrial automation company building sensing and intelligence for robots to collaborate with humans safely, to its first-annual Advanced Manufacturing 50 ranking, showcasing the 50 most promising private advanced manufacturing companies in the world.

Founded by Patrick Sobalvarro, Clara Vu, and Scott Denenberg, Veo has pioneered the creation of software and hardware that allow for fluid, efficient, and flexible production lines within manufacturing facilities.

Also making the list within the robotics and collaborative robots category were Rokae, Novarc Technologies, Linkwiz, Exotic, and Locus Robotics. [Read more…] about Veo Robotics named in CB Insights’ advanced manufacturing top 50

Sesto Robotics raises $5.7 million for its autonomous mobile robots

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Sesto Robotics, a Singapore-based autonomous mobile robotics company, has raised $5.7 million funding from institutional investors Trive, Germany-based World Trading Inovation, and the Singapore government-backed Seeds Capital. 

Chor Chen Ang, CEO of Sesto Robotics, says: “Having WTI as a strategic investor at this stage of our company’s development helps us to expand into the important European and German market that is the home of Industry 4.0.

“WTI has a strict investment policy and the investors are entrepreneurs who have built and scaled businesses themselves and believe in investing in the right management team to create successful businesses. [Read more…] about Sesto Robotics raises $5.7 million for its autonomous mobile robots

Doosan Robotics breaks South Korean record with annual sales of more than 1,000 collaborative robots

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Doosan Robotics announced it has become South Korea’s first to achieve an annual sales record of 1,000 units for collaborative robots, also known as “cobots”.

Established in 2015, Doosan Robotics has manufactured cobots using proprietary technology and has maintained the position of number one market share holder in Korea since 2018.

Doosan Robotics has also performed remarkably in global markets, becoming the first Korean company to be named as one of world’s top five cobot manufacturers. [Read more…] about Doosan Robotics breaks South Korean record with annual sales of more than 1,000 collaborative robots

Via raises $200 million to develop and expand its mobility services

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Mobility services startup Via has raised a further $200 million in its latest funding round.

Money raised in Via’s Series E fuding round will be used to “expand access to efficient, sustainable, and equitable public mobility across the globe”, says the company.

John Elkann, chairman and CEO of Exor, lead investor in the financing, says: “More important than ever to work for an innovative and sustainable future.” [Read more…] about Via raises $200 million to develop and expand its mobility services

Trump announces tariffs on imports from Mexico

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After recently increasing the percentage of tariffs and applying them to a broader range of Chinese imports, US President Donald Trump has now imposed new tariffs on imports from Mexico. 

The proposed 5 percent tariff on all Mexican imports is yet to be made official, but Trump’s announcement has already caused concern across a range of sectors.

Trump said today on Twitter: “On June 10th, the United States will impose a 5% Tariff on all goods coming into our Country from Mexico, until such time as illegal migrants coming through Mexico, and into our Country, STOP. The Tariff will gradually increase until the Illegal Immigration problem is remedied, at which time the Tariffs will be removed. Details from the White House to follow.” [Read more…] about Trump announces tariffs on imports from Mexico

Xometry raises $50 million for on-demand parts marketplace

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Xometry, the largest on-demand manufacturing marketplace, has raised $50m in equity funding, led by Greenspring Associates.

The new funding will back efforts to build a platform connecting suppliers to businesses that need prototypes and small runs of parts.

Dell Technologies Capital will also participate in the round, along with all previous venture and strategic investors including BMW i Ventures, Foundry Group, GE Ventures, Highland Capital Partners, Maryland Venture Fund and Almaz Capital. Xometry has raised a total of $113m to date.

[Read more…] about Xometry raises $50 million for on-demand parts marketplace

GM’s autonomous driving business Cruise raises another $1.15 billion

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The autonomous driving business which General Motors acquired three years ago, Cruise, has raised more than $1 billion in its latest funding round, bringing total capital raised to approximately $7 billion.

Cruise says the equity investment of $1.15 billion is from a group comprising institutional investors, including funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, and existing partners GM, SoftBank Vision Fund and Honda.

Dan Ammann, Cruise CEO, says: “Developing and deploying self-driving vehicles at massive scale is the engineering challenge of our generation.

[Read more…] about GM’s autonomous driving business Cruise raises another $1.15 billion

Top 25 vertical farming companies

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The phrase “vertical farming” probably doesn’t need to be explained even though it’s quite new. But anyway, vertical farming refers to the practice of producing fruits and vegetables vertically, in stacked layers, perhaps on many floors inside a building, using artificial lights instead of the sun, and a whole range of relatively new technologies.

The two main reasons why this type of farming, which is also known as indoor farming, it’s a much-discussed topic now is because:

  1. there are a number of startup companies emerging in the sector and attracting tens of millions of dollars in investment; and
  2. more people live in cities than do in rural areas, a global trend which seems irreversible, and this means that the demand for fresh produce will increase in urban areas, and bringing the production closer to the consumer would make sense.

The third thing we could have added is that there is the range of new technologies available now that make vertical farming in urban areas cost-effective and possibly profitable. But we already mentioned that.

[Read more…] about Top 25 vertical farming companies

Robotic toymaker Anki to close down

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Anki, a startup company which made robotic toy cars and trucks, is planning to close its doors, according to a report on the Recode website.

The company had raised more than $200 million in funding for the venture, and generated $100 million in revenue in 2017, but is now making all of its 200 employees redundant.

In a statement to Recode, the company says that it had been left “without significant funding” which meant it could not finance its hardware and software development plans going forward.

[Read more…] about Robotic toymaker Anki to close down