ANN ARBOR – Commercial drone maker SkySpecs announced this week that it has raised $3 million in a Series A round led by Venture Investors. The round also included new investment from Huron River Ventures, Amherst Fund and Michigan Angel Fund, along with additional investment from Invest Michigan.
“Unlike other drone companies on the market that are claiming to do it all, SkySpecs has a market-ready solution focused on dominating industrial inspection, and then scaling to adjacent markets,” said Jim Adox, Managing Director at Venture Investors. “SkySpecs’ robust collision avoidance technology allows it to go after commercial verticals its competitors can’t pursue.”
Every major industry is evaluating how drones can be used to increase productivity, profitability, and worker safety. Despite their great potential, drones are not intuitive to fly, a problem which is exacerbated when utilizing UAVs near expensive assets. With increasing attention being paid to drone capabilities, the need for commercial enterprise solutions that can help mobilize drones has emerged.
“SkySpecs is incredibly excited to be working with Venture Investors, Huron River Ventures, and the rest of our Midwest syndicate, said SkySpecs CEO Danny Ellis. “We are confident that this group of investors will provide the guidance and resources SkySpecs needs to become the business we’ve always envisioned.”
Ellis noted that the Series A funding would, “allow SkySpecs to launch its automated drone inspection service into the wind turbine inspection market, as well as expand to new infrastructure inspection markets like cell towers, bridges, and sewers.” Ellis explained that SkySpecs will deploy the funds to, “grow our team, build out our field operations, and continue to develop the next generation of autonomous drone software.”
SkySpecs’ patent-pending collision-avoidance software and hardware has the ability to “lock-on” and maintain a specified distance from a target object, reducing the need for costly pilot or operator training, and ensuring maximum safety. SkySpecs is working directly with commercial customers to launch its automated drone inspection service in the first quarter of 2016.
The choice to remain in the Midwest was a deliberate one for the team that first met as graduate students at the University of Michigan. Ellis recalled, “We originated in Ann Arbor, and are proud to be growing our business here. After many years of research and development, we are ready to expand our strong and capable team, and go to market with our industry leading solution.
For more information, click on http://www.skyspecs.com/#intro
