- Cobalt Robotics — an indoor autonomous robot security company — announced it raised $35 million in Series B
- This round of funding was led by Coatue
Cobalt Robotics, a physical security service provider that builds indoor autonomous robots for making security and facility operations more effective, announced it raised $35 million in Series B funding. This round of funding was led by investment company Coatue and it will be used for geographic expansion of services throughout the U.S.
“Security is fundamentally about trust and reputation, and it needs to be reinforced across all aspects of the company: founders, employees, technology, and financial backers. Our financial backers—such as Bloomberg Beta, Sequoia Capital, and now Coatue—have been instrumental to our success so far, and they will be instrumental in our next phase of growth too,” said Cobalt CEO Dr. Travis Deyle. “Our goal is to combine the best parts of machines (unwavering attention, perfect recall, and super-human sensing) with the best aspects of people (warmth, responsiveness, and adaptability) to create service robots that dramatically improve the quality of life for everyone and fundamentally redefine the modern workplace.”
The physical security market is expected to reach nearly $119.4 billion in 2023. And security robots are an innovative new tool within the industry that enhances security programs by bridging the gap between traditional technologies and services like cameras, access control, and manned guards.
Essentially, Cobalt’s Robots-as-a-Service model combines autonomous patrolling robots with human specialists thus enabling organizations to provide a 24-hour security solution that complements existing security assets such as manned security guards and access control systems (ACS). And the result is an effective security program with significant cost-savings and robots that stay up-to-date with the latest and greatest software.
Ever since the company raised its $13 million Series A funding announcement in March 2018, Cobalt deployed its security and facilities management services to clients in various sectors including tech, defense, finance, and manufacturing and a variety of organizational sizes ranging from small startups to Fortune 50 companies.
As today’s organizations face several physical security challenges, which is cost-effectively protecting people, assets, and I.P. while ensuring the seamless flow of operations, Cobalt combines its autonomous mobile robots with highly trained remote personnel to provide a new level of situational awareness and real-time response.
And Cobalt’s robots patrol the workplace, leveraging AI to detect anomalies like open doors, environmental risks, or malicious intruders. Then Cobalt’s security specialists can respond in real-time to address any event whether it is related to security, facilities, or customer service. And this unique human-in-the-loop model has enabled Cobalt to position itself as a key player in the physical security arena.
Earlier this year, Cobalt launched its new door integration capability that enables robots to seamlessly pass through areas closed off by a door using wireless technology to communicate with access control readers — which is a first for the industry. And in addition to its client base, Cobalt has expanded its engineering and operations teams and enhanced its security and facilities teams thus bringing its unparalleled customer service and performance to new markets.
Here is how it works:
“We believe Cobalt’s robotic security guards are revolutionizing the security services space and providing an unmatched experience for customers,” added Coatue partner Kris Fredrickson. “In addition, we have been thoroughly impressed with the team’s philosophy that a great physical security service should positively impact not only the company’s operations but its culture as a whole.”
Fenwick & West represented Cobalt Robotics for the Series B round of funding. And the Fenwick transaction team was led by corporate lawyers Michael Brown, Morgan Sawchuk, James Bishop, Victoria Wong, Ammanuel Gebeyehu and Meredith Evancie.
