Robotics startup Botsync raises seed funding to automate supply chains

Botsync, a startup providing heavy-duty autonomous mobile robot solutions, said it has raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding to extend its offerings to the logistics and manufacturing sectors.

From left: Botsync founders Singaram Venkatachalam, Prashant Trivedi, Nikhil Venkatesh, and Rahul Nambiar / Photo credit: Botsync

The round was led by engineering services firm Wong Fong Industries, Seeds Capital, startup investment platform Angelhub, and alternative investments company Artesian Venture Partners. Early backers of the startup include Brinc and Nanyang Technological University’s Ecolabs Center of Innovation.

Botsync, which is based in Singapore, builds mobile robots that can transport payloads of 30 kilograms to 1,000 kilograms, reducing dependency on forklifts or manual labor. The company said its solutions are easy to deploy, as they only require minimal or no changes to a client’s existing infrastructure.

With the fresh funds, the startup aims to build out its tech teams and accelerate product development.

What problem is it solving? Prashant Trivedi, the startup’s sales chief, told Tech in Asia that labor shortage and the rising costs of employment are making it difficult for logistics and manufacturing companies to meet growing consumer demand. This problem has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, highlighting a deeper need for solutions that can streamline supply chain operations.

For that reason, Botsync designed its robots to automate simple and repetitive tasks, such as moving heavy goods from point to point so humans can focus on more value-adding activities. It claims its solutions can help clients slash about 45% of their operational costs.

Aside from building robots, the startup also runs a training arm, Botsync Labs, to equip the workforce and students with robotics and related tech skills.

With the Covid-19 pandemic, Botsync has also started offering free consultation and flexible rental-based deployments to help companies make up for a reduced workforce and meet sanitation requirements.

What’s the opportunity? According to a 2020 Market Study report, the global autonomous mobile robots market is expected to grow to US$600 million by the end of 2025, up from just US$180 million in 2017.

To capture its fair share of the market, Botsync plans to validate its product’s reliability and safety through two major pilots this year. “This will put us in a position to successfully commercialize the products from the start of 2021,” said Rahul Nambiar, Botsync’s CEO and co-founder.

The startup’s primary go-to-market strategy is to leverage its partners and build integrations with their automation tools. With this, the company will be able to rapidly implement its technology, starting from the sites of its existing partners, which currently include Wong Fong and software company SAP.

“For revenue generation, we have both a capital expenditure- and operating expenditure-type pricing model for the hardware, depending on the use cases of the customers. In addition, we will have a subscription-based pricing for certain software services,” Nambiar said.

What are its challenges? The company considers the cost and integration of its tech to be the biggest roadblocks for customers.