• Realtime Robotics

  Led · Equity · Jun 2023

  Realtime Robotics provides automatic, collision-free motion planning and runtime control that optimizes cycle time for single- and multi-robot workcells. Its award-winning multirobot optimization software rapidly generates and evaluates hundreds of thousands of possible solutions during iterative design, while runtime control enables robots to work closer together and react to dynamic changes. The company’s solutions span the lifecycle of robotic workcells, simplifying deployment, production, and retooling by producing optimized motion plans and interlocks. Customers named in the announcement include BMW, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, integrator Valiant TMS, and Schaeffler Group, who report improved cycle times, reduced downtime, and increased throughput. Realtime says it will use the Series B funds to support refinement and scalability of its workcell optimization and runtime solutions and to accelerate development of additional interfaces. Its technology already interfaces with leading simulation software and industry-standard controllers to drive industry-wide accessibility. Realtime Robotics is a Boston-based robotics software company focused on the manufacturing sector. Its flagship product, RapidPlan, provides simulation, control, task management and programming tools to accelerate robot deployment, claiming to save deployers "weeks to months" of automation setup. The company targets orchestration and deployment friction across heterogeneous hardware and has announced clients including BMW Group. Realtime says it will use recent funding for deployment, scaling and R&D on existing and future offerings and to speed rollout to global end users and line builders across the automotive and automated warehouse industries. The firm is selectively hiring robot control engineers, product design engineers and a senior robotics software engineer to refine products and launch new ones. Realtime is currently valued at $130 million and has raised north of $54 million to date as part of what it describes as one prolonged Series A. Realtime Robotics, headquartered in Boston, generates collision-free motion plans in milliseconds for industrial robots and autonomous vehicles and recently launched RapidPlan. RapidPlan automates programming, deployment and control of industrial robots, autonomously creating and choreographing robot movements without brand-specific programming. Within RapidPlan users create a digital twin of their workcell, point-and-click to visualize collision-free task plans, and use the same software to control real-world robots, saving weeks to months of programming time per project. The company has pivoted away from hardware to focus on pure software to ease integration with customers' existing stacks and workflows. Realtime said it will apply the new funds to scale to meet demand, invest in engineering development, and enable enhancements to its core software. RapidPlan has been demonstrated with partners Kawasaki Robotics and Mitsubishi Electric Automation at Automate 2022 and was planned to be shown at IMTS 2022. Realtime Robotics has developed a specialized processor and software for real-time, collision-free motion planning that allows single or multiple industrial robots to operate autonomously at full speed in unstructured and uncaged environments. Its solution reduces engineering complexity by enabling robots to be deployed, updated, and redeployed with minimal programming, shortening cycle times and improving throughput. The technology lets robots function together in collaborative workspaces and react instantly to dynamic obstacles, expanding automation potential across manufacturing, logistics, and automotive supply chains. Realtime reports early deployment success and says a broad spectrum of customers and partners are working with the company to refine features and user experience ahead of rollouts. The company plans to apply the new funds to accelerate product rollouts, continue investment in enhancements and solutions, deepen its reach in warehouse automation, and keep serving global automotive manufacturers and their supply chain. Realtime is also continuing development of a collaborative “holy grail” system that integrates its real-time planning with certified system components so robots can proactively adapt motions and avoid unwanted contact with humans while accomplishing tasks. The raise occurs amid industry tailwinds, including heavy warehouse labor costs and an industrial automation market projected to grow to $306.2 billion by 2027. Realtime Robotics builds a two-part solution—RapidPlan and RapidSense—that combines proprietary hardware and software to enable motion planning and collision avoidance for robots in dynamic environments. The technology stems from research done at Duke University in 2016 and is aimed at allowing people and multiple robots to work collaboratively without expensive safety systems or time-consuming programming. The company is working with 13 customers on proof-of-concept projects with the aim of having those customers act as OEMs and sell the products. Realtime Robotics is engaging major robotics companies and several automotive firms that have an interest in collision-avoidance applications. Toyota was an early investor and other strategic robotics and automotive players have participated in recent financings. CEO Peter Howard says the company may expand into industries such as agriculture, food service, and construction once established in core markets.

• Phantom AI

  Participated · Series C · Feb 2023

  Phantom AI provides a comprehensive autonomous driving platform that includes computer vision, sensor fusion and control capabilities. The company was founded in 2017 by Hyunggi Cho and Chan Kyu Lee and is based in Mountain View, CA. Phantom plans to use the new funding to accelerate series production development with major OEMs. The startup has raised a total of $80.2M since its founding. Its product focus is on moving autonomous-driving technology into production through partnerships with automakers. Phantom AI develops a vehicle-agnostic autonomous driving platform featuring computer vision, sensor fusion and control capabilities delivered through a modular, software-based vehicle stack. OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers can select and customize components of the stack for high flexibility. The company was founded in 2016 by lead engineers from Tesla’s and Hyundai’s ADAS teams and is led by CEO Hyunggi Cho. Phantom AI works with several automakers, a truck OEM and multiple European and Asian tier 1 suppliers. The company raised $22m in a Series A round, bringing total capital raised to date to $27m. It plans to use the funds to accelerate product development and to scale operations in Europe and Asia.

• Ascend Elements

  Participated · Series C · Oct 2022

  Ascend Elements commercializes an ultra‑efficient Hydro‑to‑Cathode process to produce sustainable pCAM and CAM from black mass recovered from recycled lithium‑ion batteries. The company is building Apex 1, a 1‑million‑square‑foot facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, slated to open in early 2025, which is expected to produce materials sufficient for up to 750,000 electric vehicles per year. Ascend’s process eliminates intermediary steps in traditional cathode manufacturing, yielding economic and carbon‑reduction benefits, and peer‑reviewed studies show recycled materials perform comparably to those from mined sources. The Apex 1 project is partly supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Financially, Ascend announced $162 million in new equity financing as part of a Series D, bringing its 12‑month funding total to $704 million following a $542 million round in September 2023. Goldman Sachs served as sole placement agent for the Series D round. Ascend Elements develops sustainable, closed-loop lithium-ion battery materials, including recycled battery feedstock, precursor cathode active material (pCAM) and cathode active materials (CAM). Its proprietary Hydro-to-Cathode® direct precursor synthesis technology produces new pCAM from spent lithium-ion cells, aiming to reduce cost, improve performance, and lower GHG emissions. The company has signed commercial-scale supply contracts (including a $1 billion pCAM contract starting Q4 2024 with options up to $5 billion) and is building its Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Apex 1 is planned as a 1-million-square-foot plant on a 140-acre site, targeting enough sustainable pCAM for 750,000 electric vehicles per year when complete. Ascend has also secured two U.S. Department of Energy grants totaling $480 million under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Led by CEO Mike O’Kronley, the company is scaling from EV battery recycling through commercial pCAM and CAM production. Ascend Elements develops engineered materials and lithium-ion battery recycling processes, including commercial-scale production of lithium-ion battery precursor (pCAM) and cathode active materials (CAM). Its proprietary Hydro-to-Cathode direct precursor synthesis technology produces new CAM from spent lithium-ion cells, aiming to reduce cost, improve performance, and lower GHG emissions. The company intends to accelerate commercialization of that process and scale production to serve EV supply chains. Ascend has disclosed plans to invest up to $1 billion to build the Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Ky., which is expected to produce enough pCAM and CAM to equip up to 250,000 electric vehicles per year. Financially, the company recently raised $300 million in equity and debt (including $200 million in Series C equity) and has two Department of Energy grants totaling $480 million. Led by CEO Mike O’Kronley, Ascend positions itself as a provider of sustainable, closed-loop battery materials solutions from EV battery recycling to commercial-scale cathode manufacturing. Ascend Elements develops Hydro-to-Cathode™ direct precursor synthesis technology to produce cathode active materials from spent lithium-ion cells. The process is presented as more efficient than traditional methods, offering reduced cost, improved performance, and lowered greenhouse gas emissions. The company is led by CEO Mike O’Kronley and is based in Westborough, MA. Ascend plans significant manufacturing and recycling capacity expansions, including a multi‑phase investment of up to $1 billion to build a facility called “Apex 1” in Hopkinsville, Ky. Apex 1 is expected to produce enough precursor and sustainable cathode active material to equip up to 250,000 electric vehicles per year. Ascend is also opening a battery recycling facility, “Base 1,” in Covington, Ga, which when fully operational in Q4 2022 will recycle more than 30,000 metric tons of used batteries and manufacturing scrap per year.

No current team members are available.