TEKEVER Raises €20 Million for ExpansionInnovative Drone-Based Intelligence-as-a-Service
Portugal-based TEKEVER – an unusual drone company that focuses on the provision of drone-based Intelligence-as-a-Service (IaaS) – has raised €20 million in venture capital to fund its global growth. The funding round was led by Ventura Capital and investors included Iberis Capital and OEMs serving the maritime shipping community.
“TEKEVER combines advanced robotics, sensing and artificial intelligence to offer revolutionary drone-based Intelligence-as-a-Service. Unlike traditional aerospace companies, we have a vertically integrated approach to our products, and full control over every aspect of the value chain, including aeronautical design, composite structures manufacturing, electronics design and production, and software development including deep capability in data science. This ability allows us to create products that are radically different, to bring them to market in record time, and to rapidly evolve them to stay ahead of the curve. In addition, TEKEVER’s team of drone operators and data analysts provide customers with an end-to-end service, allowing them to focus solely on information, while relying on TEKEVER to handle the complexity of day-to-day operations,” explains CEO Ricardo Mendes.
The European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the UK were among the first agencies to adopt TEKEVER’s revolutionary drone-based intelligence service to gather real time data across wide areas and create the intelligence needed to predict, act in a timely and efficient manner and to avoid major threats to life, the environment and the economy in a maritime context – such as piracy, drugs, human trafficking, illegal migration or fishing, etc.
TEKEVER builds multiple types of drones, with endurance up to 20 hours with a full sensor payload, including cameras, radars or cellphone detectors. The drones are built around an AI-centric platform that combines Edge AI, satellite communications and cloud computing to provide customers with real-time information and advanced analytics over simple-to-use, globally accessible web and mobile interfaces.
“95% of humans live [on] less than 5% of the Earth’s surface. To thrive as a species, we need to be able to safely discover, know and protect our entire planet, harnessing and using its resources in a responsible way. Our purpose is to offer our customers a service that is simple, effective and hides away the tremendous technical and operational complexity involved in what we’re doing. We’ve developed the entire technology stack and built a scalable industrial capability to create an end-to-end service that just redefines what’s possible in maritime surveillance. We’re leading in Europe, and we’re on our way to become the global leaders,” stated Mendes.
TEKEVER launched in 2018, has grown consistently since then and expects average growth of “at least 60%” over the next three years. The company anticipates increasing the workforce by 100 people in 2022 as it builds up development and manufacturing capability to make IaaS more widely available.
https://monch.com/tekever-raises-e20-million-for-expansion/