Germany-headquartered internet-of-things (IoT) technology provider Kinexon secured $130m today in a series A round that included carmaker BMW and telecommunications firm Deutsche Telekom.
The round was led by private equity firm Thomas H Lee Partners, which invested through its Fund IX and Automation Fund. The corporates participated through corporate venture capital vehicles BMW i Ventures and Telekom Innovation Pool respectively.
Spun out of Technical University of Munich in 2012, Kinexon has built a full-stack IoT system which combines sensors and software to optimise and automate processes using connected devices.
The company concentrates on two key areas: industrial manufacturing, where it helps businesses increase efficiency and cut costs, and sports, where the technology is used to automate player-tracking in order to analyse performance.
BMW had already worked with Kinexon to develop IPS-I, a software platform which records positional data through a range of different sensors and automates complex parts of the vehicle manufacturing process.
Milan Nedeljković, the BMW board member overseeing production at the corporate, said: “Automotive production at the BMW Group is a lot like top-flight sport in that it’s about high-performance processes.
“The real-time locating platform IPS-i forms the backbone for fully digitalising our production. It’s an innovative operating system that makes our highly complex manufacturing processes transparent and raises efficiency in production even further.
“We are now intensifying our well-established, long-standing partnership with Kinexon by acquiring a stake in them. Together, we want to set new standards in digital production steering.”
Deutsche Telekom had meanwhile collaborated with the company on a system that applied movement detection to ensure social distancing in workplaces during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dennis Nikles, chief executive of Deutsche Telekom’s IoT subsidiary said: “Deutsche Telekom’s strategic investment in Kinexon strengthens the IoT partnership between our two companies, through which we offer manufacturing customers real-time location-based automation solutions.
“Deutsche Telekom’s 5G capabilities also pave the way for co-development opportunities between our two companies. We are excited to continue partnering with such an innovative company.”
The series A proceeds will be allocated to enhancing Kinexon’s process automation technology and supporting geographic expansion in Europe and North America.
The company had previously secured $17.8m in venture debt from European Investment Bank in November 2020, and VentureBeat reported today it had raised $18m in equity and debt financing in the run up to the series A round.
Image courtesy of Deutsche Telekom AG.
