Nectar builds ultrasound depth-sensing bottle caps that measure liquid level by timing sonar pulses and has added gyroscopic beer taps that infer pour volume from angle and time. Its Bluetooth-enabled caps sync to a base hub and feed real-time pour data to desktop, iOS and Android apps, and the system is designed to integrate with point-of-sale systems. Nectar sells hardware-plus-software subscriptions (eg, a 20-cap package for $99/month billed annually, a free two-tap trial, and a $399/month enterprise plan for 100 taps) and also offers a software-only PrecisionAudit app. The company has recorded 2 million pours and reports growth of 200% quarter-over-quarter as bowling alley chains and stadiums run pilots. Product plans include developing a solution for wine, which would require a system to remove air from bottles nightly. The CEO previously co-founded Chegg, and Nectar has attracted high-profile backers and hospitality industry interest. Nectar is developing a minimally invasive IoT hardware-and-software system to collect real-time liquor inventory data and reduce losses from oversized pours, spills, and theft. The company is keeping product details under wraps while it completes development. In the short run Nectar aims to help bars and restaurants regain control of liquor supply and reduce labor-intensive inventory work. The device is described as less invasive than existing weight- or camera-based solutions and is intended to enable seamless order fulfillment. In the long run Nectar plans to use consumption data for industry-wide forecasting and analytics valuable to distillers and CPG players. The company operates out of a Palo Alto office and is led by co-founders Aayush Phumbhra and Prabhanjan "PJ" Gurumohan, who previously worked on Chegg and Genwi.

Total raised

$15M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Series A

Latest activity

May 2019