Unmanned aerial vehicle services provider Airware has acquired France-based aerial data provider Redbird, providing an exit to energy utility Engie and its own Commercial Drone Fund, TechCrunch has reported.
Redbird uses drones to gather information that can then be analysed on its cloud platform. It chiefly serves the construction, mining and quarrying industries.
The company will continue to operate under its own name post-acquisition as well as serving as the European office for US-headquartered Airware.
The amount paid for Redbird was not disclosed, but the company had raised $3.2m in funding, according to TechCrunch. Engie, then known as GDF Suez, invested $2.15m in April 2015 through its GDF Suez New Ventures unit.
Airware Commercial Drone Fund also invested in Redbird in 2015, after Groupe Monnoyeur, a France-based dealer of Caterpillar construction equipment, provided it with seed funding the previous year.