• Formant

  Participated · Equity · Oct 2023

  Formant provides a data collection and assessment platform that centralizes the complex sensor data produced by deployed robots and brings humans into the loop for managing those assets. The product is hardware-agnostic and supports a wide range of platforms including flying, underwater, mowing, delivery robots, quadrupeds and bipeds. Customers include Blue River (John Deere-owned), security robotics firm Knightscope, and BP. The company reports platform usage at scale, with customers operating on the platform with tens of thousands of robots. Financially, Formant recently announced a $21 million funding round led by BMW i Ventures, following an $18 million Series A announced last January. The new capital will be used to accelerate go-to-market efforts as the company expands from underserved sectors like agriculture toward more mature categories such as warehouse and manufacturing. Formant offers a unified platform that combines remote-controlling of autonomous robots, analytics, and tools to inspect and debug robot behavior (branded as “observe”). The product focuses on operation, assists (teleoperations) and analytics workflows to measure fleet ROI, assist frequency and performance trends. Formant intentionally does not build autonomy itself but integrates data across heterogeneous vendors such as Boston Dynamics, Fanuc and DJI to give operators a single view. Founded in 2017 by Jeff Linnell after he left Google, the company began as an API enabling robots to request human assistance and expanded to a broader fleet-management solution. Its software has been used to run tens of thousands of robots. Formant plans to double headcount over the next 12–18 months, build out engineering and sales operations, expand into Europe, and is hiring in locations including Pittsburgh after acquiring a stealth teleoperations company there. Formant provides a cloud platform that collects robot "shaped data" (LiDAR, depth imagery, video, photos, log files, metrics, motor torques and scalar values) and aligns it so a single human can monitor and intervene across fleets. The software parses those streams, alerts a human "foreman" when the system is uncertain, suggests options for remediation, and turns human decisions into training data to improve automation. Formant is launching a closed beta and reports SaaS pilots across verticals including food manufacturing, heavy infrastructure inspection, construction, training animals and retail use cases. The founders and early team are ex-Googlers with prior robotics startups and acquisitions, positioning the product as a cloud layer for robotics analogous to AWS/Google Cloud for data companies. The company raised a $6 million seed round from SignalFire to fund development and go-to-market ahead of a wider customer launch. Formant sees competition from large tech companies and incumbent engineering firms, and emphasizes enterprise customization and security as differentiators.

• Helm.ai

  Participated · Series C · Aug 2023

  Helm.ai develops AI software for autonomous driving and the automation of robotics, with a focus on high-end ADAS and L4 autonomy. The company supplies technology for automotive and robotics customers and partners. Founded in November 2016 and led by CEO Vlad Voroninski, it is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. Helm.ai intends to use new capital to advance R&D and to productize its self-driving technologies. The company also plans to further execute on commercial engagements with customers and partners in the automotive and robotics sectors. The Series C increased the company's total reported funding to $102M. Helm.ai develops an unsupervised learning software stack that trains neural networks without large-scale fleet data, simulation or human annotation, and is sensor- and compute-agnostic. The company positions its product for high-end ADAS and L4 autonomous solutions and sells to OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers. Helm.ai says its approach reduces cost and expedites development timelines compared with conventional annotation- and simulation-heavy pipelines. The startup has attracted customers including Honda and other partners under NDA. It operates with a roughly 50-person workforce and will use new funding to add employees, invest in R&D and build commercial partnerships. The company is a six-year-old Menlo Park, California-based startup with a post-money valuation reported at $431 million and $78 million raised to date. Helm.ai develops AI software for high-end ADAS and Level 4 autonomous driving, using its Deep Teaching unsupervised learning technology based on mathematical modeling to train on large datasets with little or no human intervention. Led by CEO Vlad Voroninski, the company has grown in revenue and secured commercial contracts with multiple OEMs. It also reports partnerships with Tier 1 suppliers, chip and sensor companies, including previously announced collaborations with NVIDIA and Honda via Honda’s Xcelerator program. Helm.ai intends to use the new capital to grow its customer base and accelerate product expansion. The company is based in Menlo Park, California and has raised a total of $44M to date. The business focus remains on expanding commercial deployments of its autonomous-driving software. Helm.ai builds software that interprets vehicle sensor data using an unsupervised learning approach so neural networks can be trained without large-scale fleet data, simulation, or human annotation. The company is software-only and agnostic to compute platforms and sensors. Its product aims to match human-like understanding of sensor data to power driving systems. Helm.ai plans to license its software for Level 2/Level 2+ advanced driver assistance and Level 4 autonomous fleets. The startup has a small team of about 15 people and says it already has customers, some beyond the pilot phase. It will use new funding to expand engineering and R&D, hire more employees, and lock in and fulfill customer deals.

• Spiffy

  Participated · Series C · Feb 2023

  Spiffy is an on-demand car care, technology, and services company delivering mobile automotive maintenance and dealer-facing hardware and software. Since launching in 2014, Spiffy has completed over 2 million mobile services and currently performs 3,000–4,000 services daily across more than 45 markets. The company operates over 350 vans staffed by more than 500 W2 technicians and ASE-certified mechanics. Spiffy offers wash and detail, oil changes, tires, brakes, and other maintenance solutions performed onsite using its Spiffy Green system. In 2020 Spiffy introduced Digital Servicing, a private-label van upfit plus a comprehensive software suite (consumer apps, technician app, and manager/dashboard) for dealers. With back-to-back years of more than 90% growth, Spiffy plans to expand via new franchise markets, roll out Spiffy Tires and Spiffy Brakes, and introduce medium- and heavy-duty fleet services nationwide. Spiffy provides on-site car washing, detailing, and maintenance services through a mobile app that enables scheduling in under two minutes. The company recently introduced Fleet Management as a Service (FMaaS) to manage fleets across the entire vehicle lifecycle, including in-fleeting, preventive maintenance, and de-fleeting. Spiffy serves consumers, rental and commercial fleets, auctions, and car-sharing services, and its offering is designed to be EV/AV and connected-car friendly. It operates a fleet of over 100 vans in 11 cities and employs more than 150 W-2 trained technicians. Spiffy has partnerships with companies such as Lyft and a recent Ford connected-car partnership. The company plans to expand FMaaS into six additional markets and roll the service out in existing markets including Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas–Fort Worth, Los Angeles, and Raleigh–Durham. Spiffy is an on-demand car cleaning, technology, and services company that lets customers schedule, track, and pay for mobile washes and details via an app or website. The company operates in Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina; Atlanta, Georgia; and Los Angeles, California. Spiffy’s vans bring their own water and equipment and offer waterless and multiple detail service tiers, all using the Spiffy Green environmentally friendly system. The business reported over 150% growth from 2015 to 2016. With the Series A proceeds the company plans to expand into new markets, invest in technology, and explore additional services. Concurrently Spiffy expanded to Los Angeles through the acquisition of Squeegy’s operations, gaining access to more than 14,000 residential and commercial relationships.

• Get Spiffy

  Participated · Series C · Feb 2023

  Get Spiffy operates an on-demand mobile car care service and a private-label hardware and software-as-a-service offering called Digital Servicing. The company performs wash & detail, oil change, tires, brakes, and other maintenance services onsite for fleets, office parks, and residences. Since launching in 2014, Spiffy has delivered over 2 million mobile automotive services and currently completes between 3,000 and 4,000 services daily across 45+ markets. The company employs over 500 W2 technicians and ASE-certified mechanics operating from 350+ vans nationwide. Spiffy reported back-to-back years of 90%+ growth. With Digital Servicing (introduced in 2020), Spiffy provides dealer-branded van upfits, a consumer app suite, technician app, and manager/customer dashboards to support dealer partners. Get Spiffy operates an on-demand car care, technology and services business centered on a Fleet Management as a Service (FMaaS) platform. Led by CEO Scot Wingo and based in Research Triangle Park, N.C., the platform enables rental car fleets, automotive auctions, midsize fleets and car-sharing services to manage vehicle in-fleeting, preventative maintenance and de-fleeting. Fleet managers use an app to schedule, track, rate and pay for services including pre-delivery inspections, reconditioning (wash/detail), preventative maintenance (oil change, tire rotation) and de-fleeting (de-fueling, label removal). The company is available in metro areas including Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas‑Fort Worth, Los Angeles and Raleigh‑Durham, and lists Denver, New York, Phoenix, Seattle, Tampa and Washington, DC among planned expansion targets. Get Spiffy raised $10M in funding and said it will use the proceeds to expand into those new cities and further roll out in existing markets. No revenue or user metrics were disclosed in the article. Get Spiffy is an on-demand car care, technology, and services company that lets customers schedule mobile washes, detailing, and oil changes via its app. The service uses a green, environmentally-friendly system and the company’s technology enables clients to track and pay for services at their chosen time and location. Led by CEO Scot Wingo, Spiffy operates in Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia, Los Angeles, California and Dallas, Texas. The company closed a $9M funding round in July 2018. Management intends to use the proceeds to broaden car care services, expand into additional geographies, and develop new channels. The business combines field operations with a consumer-facing app and service logistics technology. Get Spiffy, led by CEO Scot Wingo, offers an app-based platform that lets users schedule, track and pay for mobile car washing and detailing services using an environmentally-friendly cleaning system. The company is Research Triangle Park, NC–based and currently operates in Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia and Los Angeles, California. Spiffy provides on-demand services to both residential and commercial customers and announced the acquisition of ongoing operations from Squeegy, adding over 14,000 residential and commercial relationships. The business intends to use the new capital to expand into new markets, invest in its technology and explore additional services. Financially, the company closed a $5m Series A to support those growth plans.

• Ottometric

  Participated · Seed · Feb 2023

  Ottometric is a software company that automates and streamlines validation and training processes for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). It provides automation solutions to OEMs, Tier‑1 and Tier‑2 suppliers to improve driver safety, gain a competitive edge and ensure compliance with evolving government regulations. Led by CEO Joseph Burke and based in Boston, MA, Ottometric develops an ADAS validation platform. The company intends to use new funding to accelerate development of that platform. The business serves vehicle manufacturers and suppliers with tools to validate and train ADAS systems. Ottometric is a software company that automates and streamlines the validation and training processes for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). The company provides automation solutions to OEMs, Tier‑1 and Tier‑2 suppliers whose current development and validation methods are manual‑intensive, slow, and costly. Ottometric was founded in 2019 and is led by CEO Joseph Burke. The company is based in Waltham, MA. It intends to use the funds to accelerate growth, expand its customer base, and speed the transformation of the ADAS development and validation process. Ottometric closed a $4.9M Seed funding round to support these efforts.

No current team members are available.