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PHINXT Robotics Secures £2M to Enable Robotics Automation at Scale
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PHINXT Robotics Secures £2M to Enable Robotics Automation at Scale

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August 6, 2024

Anna Wood is the Editor of Startups Magazine. She joined…

PHINXT Robotics has developed a decentralised edge AI software solution designed to facilitate robotics automation at any scale.

Since its founding in 2022, PHINXT Robotics has been transforming warehouse automation with its innovative cloud-based platform. This platform simplifies robotic deployments and supports a flexible monthly subscription model, addressing the high setup costs – often exceeding £500,000 – and complexity that have traditionally deterred warehouse automation. As a result, over 90% of warehouses have remained fully manual.

PHINXT Robotics tackles these barriers with its proprietary technology that coordinates robots at the edge, reducing the complexity of robotic deployments by a factor of ten. The platform is compatible with a wide variety of robots, enabling customers to select and deploy the specific robotics solutions they require. Businesses using PHINXT’s technology have reported significant benefits, including doubled profit margins and productivity increases of up to four times.

The company has gained substantial market traction, securing several contracts, notably with a major UK grocery retailer following a successful pilot programme. This partnership is expected to evolve into a multi-year contract. The newly acquired funds will be used to expand PHINXT’s engineering and sales teams and to begin their expansion into mainland Europe, where they see significant opportunities. The global mobile robot market is projected to reach $16 billion, with 2.4 million mobile robots by 2027.

PHINXT Robotics envisions extending its technology beyond warehouse automation to include delivery drones and autonomous vehicles. Their core decentralised edge computing technology is capable of coordinating machines within a distributed network, paving the way for future developments in frontier technologies such as autonomous vehicles.

Recently, PHINXT graduated from the Female Foundry Visionaries AI Incubator, in partnership with Google Cloud, being recognised as one of Europe’s most innovative female-led AI startups.

PHINXT’s CEO and Co-Founder, Yanwen Chen, is a specialist in computer science and synchronisation communications for robotics, holding two PhDs in these fields. She developed an algorithm enabling robots to self-orchestrate safely even when disconnected from central networks. Chen co-founded the company with Quirino Zagarese, PhD, an expert in distributed systems, to create a scalable architecture and product.

With this latest funding, PHINXT Robotics is poised to accelerate its growth and drive innovation in the robotics industry.

Yanwen Chen, Co-Founder and CEO, PHINXT Robotics, said: “At PHINXT, our mission is to revolutionise the logistics industry with our cloud-based platform that seamlessly integrates any type of robot, enabling them to collaborate and coordinate in a shared space without the need for a centralised server. Our robot-agnostic platform supports warehouses at every stage of their automation journey, providing unparalleled flexibility and efficiency. We aim to be the gateway for the logistics industry, facilitating the integration of these robots into operations and helping businesses achieve a rapid return on investment. By accommodating different types of robots, we ensure that warehouses can optimise various tasks, from picking to transportation, enhancing overall productivity.

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“This investment will empower us to expand our team and enter new markets, driving further growth and innovation. We are excited to partner with value-add investors who recognize the uniqueness of our technology and its transformative potential across autonomous robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles.”

Brian Kinane, Founding Partner at Sure Valley Ventures, said: “PHINXT’s unique edge computing technology helps warehouses to drastically increase performance and profitability, providing a highly flexible and cost-effective robotics solution that will enable far greater adoption. From day one, what stood out to us was the strength of PHINXT’s founding team, Yanwen and Quirino, who have spent years specialising in robotics automation and distributed systems. As a specialist AI investor, we believe this is one of the strongest AI propositions to come out of the UK this year. PHIXNT has a clear advantage in terms of cost, simplicity and flexibility, and with their cutting-edge proprietary technology, are extremely well-positioned to disrupt this market globally.”

Check Warner, Partner at Ada Ventures & Co-founder of Diversity VC, added: “Yanwen Chen, CEO and co-founder of PHINXT, is without doubt one of the strongest technical founders we’ve met at Ada. Yanwen has not one but two PhDs focusing on optimization of distributed and autonomous systems and 11 years of experience in robotics managing engineering teams and building software. She developed the algorithm that allows robots to self-orchestrate safely even when they lose connection to central networks. We are delighted to be investing in a such a visionary founder who is shaping the future of edge computing, robotics and autonomous systems. We look forward to supporting Yanwen and PHINXT’s next phase of growth.”

2024-08-06

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