CHF1.2 million to give robots a sense of touch and enable autonomous learning

Please login or
register
08.03.2023
Aica Team

AICA aims to make robotics accessible to companies of all sizes by using Artificial Intelligence to automate manufacturing processes that are complex and hard for people to accomplish. The CHF 1.2 million round will allow the company to bring its robotics software into production during 2023 and expand its activities internationally.

AICA combines reinforcement learning and close-loop force control, giving robots a sense of touch and the ability to learn and adapt autonomously to changes. The state-of-the-art approach makes robot programming for complex applications affordable and efficient. It also offers manufacturers the flexibility to automate "dirty, dull & dangerous" processes that are currently still performed manually. Currently active in Switzerland and Germany, with its main customers from the automotive industries, the startup is expanding to other countries and market segments including medtech and, food processing.

Enabling SMEs to use robotics solutions

Currently, many companies are unable to afford robotized solutions because of the high implementation costs and the requirement for advanced robotics expertise to operate them. Due to the high costs of local production, the outsourcing of some processes is still widespread. However, with the solutions provided by the startup, SMEs can automate redundant, dangerous, and non-value-adding parts of their manufacturing lines, allowing human labor to focus on productive activities. This will also enable manufacturers to relocate parts of their production in-house, for better control over their value chain. As the Swiss firm expands its operations, it intends to establish local offices and hire local staff in its clients' countries, which will have a positive impact on the local economy.

The investment, led by Spicehaus Partners with the support of High-Tech Gründerfonds and Schaeffler Group, confirms the company's growth potential, as well as the sustainability of its technology and strategic vision.

This investment will help the startup expand its library of applications, tackling many of the challenges that companies have been facing for a long time. It is an important step for AICA in its vision to make automation accessible to everyone. AICA’s unique technology places the company in a perfect position to meet the growing demand for robotic solutions.

"AICA is thrilled with the support and confidence shown by our investors, which enables us to deploy our technology in Europe and beyond. We aim to empower a greater number of companies by making robotics more accessible and intelligent", said Baptiste Busch, Co-founder & CEO of AICA.

“After two promising PoCs, we are now excited to be actively invested in AICA's success story. We have come to know AICA as a very agile and innovative company and are convinced that these characteristics will contribute significantly to the company's success. Together, we will redefine robotic assembly and thereby create new value for our customers”, comments Thomas Krämer, SVP Advanced Production Technology, Schaeffler AG.

"We are deeply impressed by AICA’s strong team and deep robotics expertise. The industry 4.0 revolution has only started and increasingly also highly complex processes can be automated. We strongly believe that AICA can play an important role with its manufacturer-independent robotics software”, adds Teddy Amberg, Founding Partner at Spicehaus.

(Press release / SK)

0Comments

More news about

AICA SA

Company profiles on startup.ch

AICA SA

rss