Verve Motion, a cutting-edge startup pioneering the creation of a robotic “exosuit,” recently announced a successful $20M Series B funding round. The funds will be directed towards expanding their market presence and manufacturing capabilities.
- Investors: The round was led by Safar Partners, with participation from Cybernetix Ventures, Construct Capital, Pillar VC, OUP, and angel investors including Okta co-founder Frederic Kerrest. This brings Verve’s total raised capital to $40M.
- Origins: The concept behind Verve originated in a Harvard-run biodesign lab at the Wyss Institute and School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, where the co-founders developed technology to alleviate fatigue and injury risks for military personnel. Seeing potential applications beyond the battlefield, founders Ignacio Galiana, Conor Walsh, Mike Rouleau, Nathalie Degenhardt, and Nicolas Menard, launched Verve in 2020 to introduce their technology to industrial, retail, and manufacturing settings.
- The Problem: In many warehouses and fulfillment centers, a worker often lifts up to 50,000 pounds a day over hundreds of tasks. This leads to overexertion, injuries, fatigue, lost productivity, and high employee turnover. Verve aims to address these issues with people-centric robotics.
- The Solution: Verve’s powered exosuit is customizable, designed to be worn like a backpack, and equipped with sensors to detect risky movements and productivity metrics. It promises reduced risk of injury, increased productivity, and is more practical than non-powered alternatives or bulkier exoskeleton designs.
- Challenges: While the concept of an exosuit sounds revolutionary, there are challenges ahead. Privacy concerns over movement-tracking sensors, the high cost of outfitting an entire workforce, and competition from German Bionic, Ottobock’s SuitX, and ReWalk pose significant obstacles. Additionally, the long-term effects of wearing these exosuits remain unexplored.
Despite the challenges, Verve has sold around 1,000 exosuits and has pilot programs with chains including Albertsons and Wegmans. The company believes in a future where wearable robotic technology will become an integral part of everyday work attire.
