US-headquartered delivery robot provider Starship Technologies has received $17m from investors including Goodyear Ventures and TDK Ventures, subsidiaries of tire producer Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and electronics manufacturer TDK.
Founded in 2014, Starship operates an autonomous goods distribution service with electricity-powered robots that move at pedestrian speed. It claims the self-driving machines can avoid obstacles, and the shipment can only be unlocked by the consignee through an app.
The company said its overall funding has now reached $102m. It closed a $40m series A round in 2019 led by venture capital firm Morpheus Ventures and backed by TDK Ventures, Matrix Partners, Metaplanet Holdings, Qu Ventures, Shasta Ventures and unnamed new and returning investors.
Starship had previously secured $42.2m in seed capital raised across two tranches. The $17.2m first close was led by automotive manufacturer Daimler in 2017 and also featured Grishin Robotics, Matrix Partners, Morpheus Ventures, Playfair Capital, Shasta Ventures and ZX Ventures.
The $25m second tranche took place the year after and included Matrix Partners, Morpheus Ventures and individual investors Gary Barber, Nathan Blecharczyk and Jaan Tallinn. MetaPlanet is also among the company’s shareholders.