Enterprise-Grade Drone Software Company DroneDeploy Raises $35 Million In Funding

By Dan Anderson • Nov 15, 2019
  • Leading enterprise-grade drone software solution DroneDeploy announced it raised $35 million in Series D funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners

DroneDeploy — a leading enterprise-grade drone software solution — announced it closed $35 million in Series D funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners. Energize Ventures, AirTree, Emergence Capital, Scale Venture Partners, and Uncork Capital also joined this round of funding. Bessemer partner David Cowan — who is a 14-time Midas list investor — is joining the board at DroneDeploy. Tracy Young, co-founder and former CEO of PlanGrid is also joining DroneDeploy’s Board of Directors. Including this round of funding, DroneDeploy has raised $90 million in total funding.

“Businesses of every size are turning to DroneDeploy to enable them to make better decisions,” said Michael Winn, co-founder and CEO of DroneDeploy. “We’re proud our software delivers faster, safer and more accurate insights over the one million flights our customers perform every year. This investment is a reflection of the growth of commercial drones in the enterprise and will help us deliver on the promise of automated drone use across every industry.”

“Drones are transforming how field workers safely and accurately survey job sites across industries in construction, agriculture, energy, and more,” added Cowan. “At Bessemer, we see drone solutions as a major opportunity in a $6 billion global market and DroneDeploy is the clear software category leader. The world’s largest drone deployments rely on their technology, and we’re excited to help bring the value of their platform to companies around the world.”

This round of funding comes on the heels of momentum for DroneDeploy. And the company recently announced entry into the drone inspections market at its annual conference in San Francisco. Plus DroneDeploy also announced new partnerships with Airbus and drone hardware maker Skydio.

“Drones are powerful and valuable business tools, but what the industry was missing was accessibility paired with world-class technology,” explained Young. “DroneDeploy is an authentic, motivated software company working to democratize commercial drones and disrupt traditional industries. I’m proud to provide my perspectives and insights as they push forward.”

With this round of funding, DroneDeploy will expand internationally, move into new industries, and further build out its suite of offerings for customers. Currently, DroneDeploy has over 5,000 customers across several industries, including those in oil & gas, construction, mining, solar, agriculture, insurance, wind, and search & rescue. And DroneDeploy customers have mapped over 100 million acres on the platform. Next year, DroneDeploy estimates several customers will have a fleet of over 1,000 drones.