Founded in 2013, Petnet develops connected pet-feeding products that combine vet-approved information with local sensors to recommend what, how much, and when pets should eat. Its core hardware includes the SmartFeeder automated feeder and the SmartBowl, which notifies users when they've poured the correct amount while leaving feeding manual. The company positions itself around delivering a personalized pet care experience that extends beyond feeding into other areas of pet care. Petnet aggregates veterinary guidance and sensor data to help owners address common issues like pet obesity. The business is expanding distribution through retail partnerships to increase nationwide reach. The company recently raised funding to support that expansion. Petnet is a consumer-facing home automation company whose mission is to deliver the freshest and most compatible food possible to pets. Its core product, the SmartFeeder, combines artificial intelligence, robotics, sensors and networks to learn a pet’s age, weight and activity and autonomously create a caloric profile. The SmartFeeder tracks household food supply and preemptively orders food from suppliers so deliveries arrive as needed and are not stored in a warehouse for more than one day. Petnet aims to digitize and automate the pet food supply chain to reduce lead times (it says it has taken three to four months off the supply chain), improve food quality and lower costs for owners and manufacturers. To support this strategy it raised $4M in a financing involving Black River Ventures, Aspiration Growth, iRobot and the Amazon Alexa Fund to build out its digital supply chain ecosystem and commercialize the SmartFeeder. The company notes market tailwinds—nearly 70 percent of US households have a pet and pet owners spent nearly $24 billion on pet food in 2014—and its SmartFeeder won a 2015 CES Innovation Award. Petnet's core product is the $199 SmartFeeder, an Internet of Things pet food dispenser that uses intelligent sensors, learning algorithms, and onboard processing to assess dietary needs and create custom feeding schedules. The SmartFeeder alerts owners when pets have been fed and can remind owners to reorder food. Demand appears strong: Petnet reported over 10,000 pre-orders and plans to begin shipping the product mid-year. The company participated in Bolt, a Boston hardware incubator, where it received initial funding. Petnet intends to use its seed financing to commercialize SmartFeeder, enhance the product's technology, hire staff, and develop additional projects. CEO Carlos Herrera has also expressed an interest in mentoring high school students in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Total raised

$15M

Funding rounds

3

Latest round

Series A

Latest activity

Aug 2016