Today, we're excited to announce that DroneBase has raised $7.5 million in Series C funding to expand our services to the renewable energy market with DroneBase Insights for Wind and Solar, and to found DroneBase Europe in Germany. New investors Valor Equity Partners and Razi Ventures joined Union Square Ventures (USV), Upfront Ventures, Hearst Ventures, Pritzker Group Venture Capital, and DJI in the round, bringing total funding to $32 million.
“DroneBase has established themselves as the drone leader in the commercial market, and its new work in renewables will have a lasting impact on the future of energy by keeping infrastructure operational for generations,” says Sam Teller, Partner at Valor Equity Partners. “We believe DroneBase will continue to be a valuable partner in drone operations and data analysis across a multitude of industries globally.”
DroneBase Insights for Wind enables energy companies to use drone technology to inspect a wind turbine’s vital components through an autonomous flight system, which offers consistent data, actionable insights, and lifecycle management. Trained on a large database of turbine imagery, the platform leverages machine learning algorithms to pre-screen images without damage and focus customers’ attention on potential issues.
“DroneBase’s expansion into renewable energy reflects our belief in the growth potential of the wind and solar energy industries,” said Dan Burton, CEO and Founder of DroneBase. “Since many energy companies have both wind and solar assets, we are well positioned to leverage our DroneBase Insights platform to grow our global market share in renewable energy.”
DroneBase Insights for Solar, through our thermal pilot network trained by the FLIR Infrared Training Center, gathers accurate data allowing enterprises to collaborate and share thermal analysis efficiently amongst team members.
Drones and manned aircraft gather high-definition imagery quicker than traditional inspection methods, allowing renewable energy companies to minimize downtime and maximize energy production, while keeping people out of harm’s way.
“DroneBase has been instrumental in helping us scale solar asset inspection and analysis across North America,” said Jamie Mordarski, Director of Operations and Maintenance, Americas at SMA. “Their ability to provide 100 percent aerial coverage by using drones and manned aircraft gives them a tremendous competitive advantage. We look forward to growing our partnership with DroneBase as our portfolio grows.”
Another major milestone for DroneBase and a point of focus in this next stage of growth is the opening of our first international office in Germany. This will allow the company to expand our ability to support current customers and global energy partners with assets in Europe.
Harnessing over six years of product development and operational excellence, we look forward to offering the same level of drone services and analytics to overseas companies in industries spanning insurance, construction, real estate, and media.
To connect with a member of our team about our drone services and analytics, click here.
To sign up as a DroneBase Pilot, click here.
