Verve Motion (a Harvard University spinout) recently announced it has reached a significant milestone by securing $20 million in Series B funding. This funding round brought the company’s total to over $40 million. This marks a major step in the company’s rapid expansion and the widespread adoption of its innovative industrial-use connected wearable technology SafeLift exosuit.
The Series B funding round – which will play a major role in supporting the company’s goals of market expansion and scaling manufacturing to meet demand – was led by Safar Partners, with new investments from Cybernetix Ventures and follow-on investments from existing investors, including Construct Capital, Pillar VC, and OUP. The round also included participation from individual investors, including Frederic Kerrest, Vice-Chairman and Co-Founder of Okta, and John McEleney, Co-founder of Onshape and formerly CEO of SolidWorks.
Avoiding back injuries is a major workplace safety challenge that plagues a multitude of industries. And occupational back pain ranks as the most frequent injury, with more than one million workers suffering back injuries annually. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the average cost of back injury claims, including medical bills, wage loss benefits, and other expenses, can range from $40,000 to $80,000 per injury.
The SafeLift exosuit is known as the world’s first soft exosuit offering tailored, adaptive assistance that is customized for each worker and task. Created by a team of scientists, engineers, and athletic apparel designers, it is a lightweight wearable solution that combines real-time motion sensing with robotic assistance.
The comfortable form factor – which is worn like a backpack – is designed to power and protect industrial workers. The solution alleviates about 40% of the strain on a worker’s back during a typical workday by providing assistance in parallel with their underlying muscles. SafeLift exosuit includes a cloud platform with motion-based sensors for automatic detection of risky movements like excessive bending and twisting. The software not only improves injury prevention through coaching but also promotes ergonomic enhancements in the workplace.
Verve Motion’s technology has evolved from work in the Biodesign Lab at Harvard’s John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. And researchers there developed a soft exosuit with the goal of mitigating fatigue and injury risks for military personnel, work that paved the way for the next generation of wearable robots.
This work was supported by DARPA (The U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), the National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health.
Since the company was founded in 2020, Verve Motion’s soft exosuits have helped American workers lift more than 300 million pounds, eliminating up to 85% of lower back and hip injuries at sites using SafeLift, and increase productivity by 3-7%, while creating a positive effect on worker retention and recruiting.
KEY QUOTES:
“The era of transformation in workplace safety and productivity is here. Our mission is to power the human workplace by spearheading the next generation of wearable technology for industrial workers. Our SafeLift solution significantly diminishes the risk of back injury and fatigue, while enhancing facility productivity, and fostering employee retention. We’re creating a safer and more efficient future for industrial workers globally. This additional funding will drive the expansion of our solution and enable us to scale operations to meet the growing demand for our technology, ensuring it is accessible to the workers who need it most.”
– Ignacio Galiana, the CEO and Co-founder of Verve Motion
“As a lead investor in the Series B funding, we are excited to fuel the growth and innovation of Verve Motion, a trailblazing force in wearable robotics. The company’s focus on commercializing high-performance wearable technology for the workplace aligns with our vision for transformative advancements in world-changing disruptive technology. We believe this substantial investment will not only accelerate Verve Motion’s market presence but also contribute to reshaping the landscape of workplace safety and productivity.”
– Arunas Chesonis, co-founder of Safar Partners
“At Albertsons Companies, we are committed to pursuing innovative technologies that will safeguard our associates, particularly those on the frontline in our distribution centers. The integration of the SafeLift solution into our warehouse operations is proving to be a game-changer, helping mitigate physical strain, reducing injuries, and cultivating a safer work environment. We are enthusiastic about what we’ve observed and look forward to furthering our partnership with Verve Motion as we continue to prioritize the health, safety, and well-being of our employees.”
– Mustafa Harcar, VP of Automation at Albertsons Companies
