Third Wave Automation develops the TWA Reach line of autonomous forklifts and a Shared Autonomy platform that lets machines operate autonomously or hand control to remote operators. Its system uses automotive-grade 3D lidar and an advanced camera perception stack, including a Collision Shield obstacle-detection system, to map warehouses quickly and improve obstacle awareness. The Armada Fleet Management System enables a single operator to monitor and manage multiple forklifts and integrates with warehouse management systems to execute workflows and configure zones. TWA Reach forklifts operate in four modes—fully autonomous, remote assist, remote operation and manual—and are designed for high-reach, end-to-end warehouse tasks. Led by CEO Arshan Poursohi and based in Union City, CA, the company emphasizes machine learning to continuously adapt vehicle behavior. The company plans to scale its platform, expand manufacturing of the TWA Reach forklifts, and support future technology development to advance autonomous forklifts in warehouse environments. Third Wave Automation develops autonomous forklift solutions, including the TWA Reach system and a fleet management platform that uses machine learning and AI to coordinate people and automated systems. The TWA Reach can operate in four modes: fully autonomous, remote operation, remote assist and manual operation. The company emphasizes improving throughput, efficiency and safety by combining human operators and automation. Third Wave plans to expand its product offerings and accelerate solutions for other classes of forklifts, such as narrow aisle and counterbalance trucks, and to integrate with automation solutions like Fetch Robotics (now part of Zebra Technologies). The company is led by CEO Arshan Poursohi and was founded in 2018. A recent strategic investment brought its total funding to $70M. Third Wave Automation develops autonomous forklifts that operate under a shared-autonomy model (able to run autonomously ~90% of the time with remote-control fallback). Its product combines onboard sensors, a compute stack, and software to handle pallet manipulation in brownfield warehouse environments. The company emphasizes fast setup and ease of operation so customers can staff remote assistance on-site. Third Wave recently completed technical trials and is still at an early stage but has momentum from a new funding round. The startup is in active conversations with about 20 third-party logistics operators and retailers as it commercializes. It plans to scale operations and hiring to support deployments and aims for 100 units in the field by the end of 2022 and 350–400 by the end of 2023. Third Wave Automation builds an autonomous forklift platform that combines robotics, computer vision, and machine learning to operate in dynamic warehouse environments. The company uses a "shared autonomy" approach to augment rather than replace human operators, learning from operator interactions and real-time sensor data to handle obstacles, degraded pallets, misplaced items, varying payloads, and maneuvers like high-rack put-away. CEO and cofounder Arshan Poursohi, a former Google roboticist and director of engineering at Toyota Research Institute, leads a team that includes cofounders Julian Mason and James Davidson. Founded two years ago, Third Wave emerged from stealth with $15 million in equity financing and says it has signed undisclosed customers. The proceeds will be used to accelerate go-to-market efforts as the company targets strain on supply chains driven by rising e-commerce volumes. Third Wave positions itself against rivals such as Vecna Robotics, Baylo, and Sierra.ai in a growing warehouse-automation market.

Total raised

$82M

Funding rounds

4

Latest round

Series C

Latest activity

Oct 2024