BOWE Group leads $8.2 million investment round in robotics software company MOV.AI
MOV.AI's Robotics Engine Platform is said to enable smooth human-robot collaboration, and is something BOWE GROUP experienced firsthand as a customer
BOWE Group, a leading provider of integrated automation technology, has announced an $8.2 million investment round in MOV.AI - a startup software company whose platform addresses autonomous mobile robot (AMR) solution development. The round is led by BOWE Group and includes MOV.AI’s existing investors State of Mind Ventures, NFX, and Viola Ventures.
The investment reflects BOWE’s strategic view of robotics in the future of automation and is a vote of confidence in MOV.AI’s innovative approach to robot software, BOWE Group explained. Automation is playing an increasingly important role in the supply chain, specifically in intralogistics, with robots at the forefront of this trend, the group added. ABI Research estimates that worldwide shipments of warehouse mobile robots will experience a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of almost 40% from 2021 to 2030, reaching over 500,000 global shipments in 2030.
To date, developing – and more importantly, deploying AMRs has been an expensive and time-consuming task, due to monolithic, inflexible robot software that is tightly coupled with robot hardware, according to BOWE Group. “We are extremely bullish on MOV.AI’s ability to modernize the robotics market, a market that is a key pillar in modern industrial automation and is poised for hypergrowth,” said Joachim Koschier, BOWE GROUP Managing Director. “The MOV.AI Robotics Engine Platform enables smooth human-robot collaboration in automation projects – something that BOWE GROUP experienced firsthand as a customer. The digital transformation occurring in the intralogistics space requires flexibility, operational agility, and maintainability. MOV.AI provides the complete infrastructure and tools required to create and operate fleets of any AMR.”
MOV.AI’s Robotics Engine Platform changes how AMRs are built, separating software from hardware and offering both AMR manufacturers and automation integrators the enterprise-grade tools they need for advanced automation, BOWE Group added.
“We are excited to have such an innovative leader as BOWE GROUP join our strong group of investors and lead this round,” said MOV.AI CEO Motti Kushnir. “The pressure on supply chains creates an opportunity for AMR manufacturers and automation integrators, who need to develop and deploy robots that meet customer needs quickly. BOWE GROUP is a leader in the world of intralogistics and automation. Their knowledge and expertise will drive forward MOV.AI’s ability to meet customer needs and extend our market reach. We are thankful to our investors – State of Mind Ventures, NFX, Viola Ventures, and now BOWE GROUP – for their ongoing belief in our vision and in our ability to execute it. Their confidence as evidenced in this round is helping us drive change in the market and provide our customers with a much-needed solution.”
Following the investment, Joachim Koschier, BOWE GROUP Managing Director, and Mike Swift, Managing Director of Red Ledge North America, will be joining the MOV.AI board of directors. The company will use the proceeds from the round to accelerate product delivery, meet the demands of more customers, and engage with the ROS developer community.
