Karcher New Venture
Alfred-Kärcher-Straße 28–40, Winnenden, Baden-Württemberg, 71364, Germany
Overview
Kärcher New Venture is the corporate venture capital arm of Alfred Kärcher, the provider of cleaning technology for commercial and private customers. It enables innovative and dynamic to further develop their startups founders and to shape the cleaning industry of the future in partnership with it. It seeks to invest in pioneering product-, material- or service-based solution for future challenges within the cleaning sector. Besides its investment, Kärcher is also actively looking for start-up solutions to be used within the Kärcher group like B2B enterprise software as a venture client. In 2019, the Kärcher group achieved, with its operations in 72 countries, the highest turnover of its history (EUR 2.6 billion).
- Total investments
- 5
- Lead investments
- 2
- Investments · 12mo
- 0
- Active investors
- 6
Sector focus
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Business Development
- CleanTech
- Commercial
- Professional Services
- Robotics
- Venture Capital
Investment portfolio
- TULU
Participated · Series A · Apr 2022
Founded in 2020, New-York-based TULU installs plug-and-play, IoT-enabled cabinets in multifamily buildings that dispense items such as vacuums, VR headsets, e-scooters, projectors, and household essentials. Residents reserve and pay through the TULU app, while the company’s proprietary “TULU Brain” analyzes real-time usage data to personalize offers and supply landlords and brand partners with consumer insights. The platform is active in more than 60 cities across North America and Europe and has served over 500,000 residents to date. Major property owners including Greystar, Brookfield, and Blackstone deploy TULU to boost leasing performance and retention, while brands like Bosch and Philips use it to reach Gen Z and millennial consumers and advance circularity initiatives. Revenue details were not disclosed, but management highlights “exceptional unit economics” and “impressive revenue momentum.” The company plans to use new capital to accelerate global expansion, deploy thousands of additional in-building touchpoints, and further develop its AI capabilities. Across its Seed and Series A rounds, TULU has raised a total of $42 million.
- Skyline Robotics
Participated · Series A · Mar 2022
Skyline Robotics is a deep‑tech robotics and automation company whose flagship product, Ozmo, is a robotic‑armed high‑rise window cleaning system. Ozmo combines artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, advanced robotics, and sensors to clean building façades up to three times faster than humans while reducing risk. The company positions Ozmo as a safer, faster, and more economical alternative in the $40B window cleaning industry and aims to expand automation to other types of work at heights. Skyline is expanding internationally — including plans for NYC and London — and has a partnership with Principle Cleaning Services to deploy Ozmo in London. It has secured patents in Japan and Singapore and plans to grow its R&D team and formalize a new construction line of business. Skyline recently closed a $9.8M Pre‑Series A‑2 round (including SAFE conversions), bringing total capital raised to $19.4M; proceeds will support expansion and product development. Skyline Robotics is a deep tech robotics and automation company whose flagship product, OZMO, is described as the world’s first high-rise window-cleaning robot. OZMO combines artificial intelligence, machine learning and computer vision with advanced robotics and sensors to address labor shortages and worker safety in the $40B window cleaning industry. The company has been granted key patents in Japan and Singapore and has already deployed its first robots in New York City while pursuing worldwide expansion and go-to-market strategies for major cities. Skyline received a 2023 RBR50 Robotics Innovation Award for Ozmo and emphasizes a safer, more efficient alternative to human window cleaners. Financially, Skyline completed a $3.35M funding round raised through a SAFE note to support its 2023 business operations plan and has raised $12M in total to date. Management stated the round was raised on more attractive terms than prior rounds, citing validated milestones and demand for the robotics solution as drivers of investor confidence. Skyline Robotics' flagship product, Ozmo, is described as the world’s first high‑rise window‑cleaning robot, combining AI, machine learning, computer vision and sensors. The company positions Ozmo as a safer, faster and more economical alternative to human window washers while aiming to create a human‑robot working partnership rather than replace jobs. Skyline is preparing for the first customer deployment of Ozmo in New York City and plans to expand its New York City team. The recent funding will support continued product development and new capabilities to "own the facade operations of the future." Skyline says it is disrupting the $40B window‑cleaning industry with its automation approach. Financially, the company closed a $6.5M pre‑Series A and has raised $9M to date. Skyline Robotics develops Ozmo, a window‑cleaning robot that uses computer vision and machine learning to map complex skyscraper geometries and create efficient cleaning paths. Ozmo uses distilled water as its only cleaning supply and is designed to remove humans from high‑risk window‑washing work. The company says Ozmo can speed traditional cleaning by about 18× — reducing a 40‑story building job that would require three cleaners each working roughly 480 hours into about one week with a single operator on the ground. Founded in 2017 by Avi Abadi and Yaron Schwarcz, the founders researched the job by getting certified and working as window washers before building the product. Less than a year after founding the team had systems deployed on several of Israel’s largest buildings, though they had not yet cleaned an entire building start‑to‑finish. Skyline plans to lease Ozmo to cleaning and maintenance companies worldwide on a revenue‑share, no‑upfront‑cost model, targeting the $10B window‑washing market and then the broader construction industry. The company also states it will implement a CSR program to fund two years of basic engineering training for displaced window washers once it begins generating revenue.
- InOrbit
Participated · Seed · Jul 2020
InOrbit.AI offers InOrbit Space Intelligence™, a cloud-based robot orchestration layer that serves as the "central nervous system" for physical operations, letting enterprises monitor, coordinate, and optimize heterogeneous robot fleets alongside human workers. The software integrates with existing WMS, ERP, and other operational systems, adding agentic AI to enable autonomous decision-making and adaptive responses on the factory floor or in warehouses, retail stores, and hotels. The company already manages robots on four continents for customers such as Colgate-Palmolive and Genentech (Roche Group). With the newly raised Series A capital, InOrbit.AI plans to accelerate platform development and broaden its reach in manufacturing, logistics, retail, and hospitality. Strategic collaboration with Globant will infuse additional AI capabilities via the Globant Enterprise AI platform. In 2024 the startup was also selected for the Google for Startups Founders Fund focused on artificial intelligence, underscoring its industry momentum. Based in Silicon Valley, InOrbit.AI aims to become the shared digital infrastructure for the projected billion robots expected in the coming decade.
- Mitte
Led · Equity · Aug 2018
Mitte builds a smart home water system that purifies tap water using a proprietary distillation-based method and adds essential minerals via interchangeable cartridges. The cartridges are designed to replicate natural mineralization and let users personalize mineral levels and taste. The system includes smart technology and IoT connectivity to manage and customize users’ hydration experience. Mitte positions its product as a sustainable alternative to bottled water to reduce plastic waste. The company was founded in June 2016 and had early backing from Atlantic Food Labs. Mitte ran a successful U.S. crowdfunding campaign in 2017 that was overfunded by 360%. The company is pursuing geographic expansion, including plans in the U.S.