The corporate referred to as DroneBase is not any extra. However its vitality and infrastructure inspection software program is generally the identical — as are the folks powering it. That’s as a result of the corporate previously referred to as DroneBase at present introduced a rebrand to a brand new title: Zeitview. And with the Zeitview rebrand comes a number of new modifications — and a complete lot more cash.
“As Zeitview, the corporate will proceed constructing superior inspection software program that delivers quick, correct insights, lowers prices for asset homeowners and improves efficiency and longevity,” in keeping with a Zeitview assertion. “The title change comes with the corporate’s more and more numerous information seize instruments.”
The Los Angeles-based Zeitview will stay an aerial information analytics firm, however some focus is altering. Right here’s what you could find out about DroneBase’s rebrand to Zeitview:
An enlargement past simply drones
Having drone within the title could have left limiting for DroneBase, which creates vitality and infrastructure inspection software program. Whereas the software program has its roots in centering round aerial information gathered by drones, the corporate has elevated expanded into floor information seize options as effectively.
Zeitview prospects have used rotary wing drones, however its inspection professionals additionally depend on crewed plane and smartphone applied sciences. The corporate additionally closely touts its accompanying software program platform, which is designed to offer deep insights and analytics for shoppers to simply view information outcomes anyplace.
Certain, a drone would possibly seize high-resolution photographs of wind generators within the Atlantic Ocean, however manned plane may additionally use Zeitview’s tech to seize thermal information of a utility-scale photo voltaic farm.
“We’re assured that our AI-enabled software program options can ship that instant reply and a long-term dwelling for our prospects, whereas we’re more and more agnostic about what device we use to seize essentially the most correct information,” stated Dan Burton, founder and chief govt officer at Zeitview.
Zeitview’s pivot parallels others we’ve seen within the drone trade. For instance, DroneDeploy — although it’s stored drone in its title — has additionally pivoted to floor robots. In 2021 it acquired Rocos, a New Zealand-based robotics software program firm. And DroneDeploy’s software program referred to as DroneDeploy 360 Walkthrough automates 360 video-based building documentation.
Behind the brand new Zeitview title
As of now, the phrase drones is gone from the title, and as a substitute the corporate known as Zeitview. That’s a German phrase which means “time view.” An organization spokesperson stated the phrase “higher captures the character of the corporate’s companies and mission to speed up the transition to renewable vitality and sustainable infrastructure. ” That point view additionally alludes to its instruments for monitoring modifications throughout a time period for an asset. So, a drone flying over a discipline would possibly monitor its modifications because it flies the identical route on a recurring foundation.
A brand new title for the corporate previously referred to as DroneBase is maybe unsurprising, as the corporate has a historical past of reshaping itself. DroneBase started as a drone pilot listing that grew to have 80,000 drone pilots in additional than 70 international locations on its roster. It then pivoted extra so into the enterprise sector (extra particularly renewables) because it launched software program merchandise like DroneBase Insights for Wind and Photo voltaic.
$55 million in funding
With the rebrand, Zeitview additionally launched a contemporary, $55 million funding spherical. That cash got here from previous traders in addition to a newcomer to the group, Valor Fairness Companions. Valor’s previous investments signifies a historical past of knowledge science and analytics-focused corporations.
Current traders embrace Union Sq. Ventures, Upfront Ventures, Euclidean Capital, Vitality Transition Ventures, and Hearst Ventures.
Zeitview stated the cash is supposed to assist “firm development, international footprint in superior inspection options, and AI-enabled asset monitoring software program improvement.”
That follows a $20 million funding spherical in October 2021, which didn’t come lengthy after the corporate’s $12.5 million Sequence C spherical.
Who’re Zeitview’s prospects?
The corporate says it’s energetic in additional than 70 international locations, and is concentrated on vitality and infrastructure markets. An enormous interval of development for the corporate was on the finish of 2021 when it acquired India-based drone firm AirProbe. That unlocked an on the spot footprint in Asia Pacific (APAC) and Europe, each of that are rising markets for the renewable vitality trade.
Renewables have been among the many hottest matters currently in lots of industries, and DroneBase (effectively, now, Zeitview) is not any exception.
In September 2022, DroneBase launched a product referred to as North American Photo voltaic Scan (NASS), which it claims is the primary standardized set of photo voltaic asset rankings. It’s an inspection program that really leverages manned plane to seize thermal inspection information within the spring and fall. That then offers photo voltaic asset homeowners information that would guarantee their utility-scale energy vegetation and distributed amenities are performing at optimum efficiency by the height season, and general guarantee higher oversight of U.S. solar energy vegetation.
Final yr, Zeitview inspected 43 GW of photo voltaic capability. The entire U.S. photo voltaic vegetation market of 1MW or bigger — roughly 80GW — is ready to be accessible by way of the DroneBase Insights platform (now Zeitview) within the spring of 2023.