Afero’s core product is an IoT platform engineered with security as a primary design principle, combined with a software development toolkit customers use to build mobile apps and tailored solutions. The platform supports consumer-facing smart-home deployments (notably Home Depot’s HubSpace) and can also handle offline tagged physical goods for supply-chain tracking. Afero emphasizes having “built things right” on security from the beginning, a stance investors cited as a differentiator. The company has 24 full-time employees and the CEO declined to disclose a precise device count, saying there are “a lot” of connected devices on its platform. Financially, Afero closed a $50M Series C and, per Crunchbase data cited in the article, that new raise is roughly equivalent to all prior capital the company had raised, implying it now has more cash on hand than at any previous point. Going forward, Afero plans to hire and invest the new capital in go-to-market activities such as marketing and sales. Afero builds a proprietary chip, router-like hardware and accompanying APIs and mobile apps to secure data from connected devices as it moves between gadgets and cloud services. Its technology is designed to work when WiFi is down by employing 4G LTE and other radio sensors. The company licenses its chips to Murata for manufacturing and sells the system to large hardware makers who install the chip in IoT devices or components. Afero’s router function can be performed by a user’s smartphone or by standalone devices made by Afero. The startup has signed deals with hardware partners including Bandai and Infocom and is also making inroads with insurers seeking early detection of water leaks. Afero recently raised new venture capital to fund these sales and partnerships.

Total raised

$70M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Series C

Latest activity

Dec 2021