Swift Navigation Raises $100 Million
Swift Navigation Raises $100 Million
Company has raised a total of $200 million to expand into ADAS, autonomy, industrial machine control and commercial transportation markets.
Expert nationwide installation services for fleet technologies.
Swift Navigation Raises $100 Million
Swift Navigation has announced that it completed a $100 million Series D financing round that was led by SK Inc. and Potentum Partners and existing investors New Enterprise Associates, Eclipse Ventures and EPIQ Capital Group.
The Series D Round included new investors: FM Capital, OVN Capital, TELUS Ventures, TWM Venture Co., Buckley Ventures, Schox Venture Capital and unnamed independent investors. To date, the company has raised more than $200 million in funding.
“We're going to use the money to fund large scale customer deployments in automotive, mobile, and mass market industrial applications. We already have the best performing corrections service with coverage across US, EU, and select parts of Asia, but will be expanding new geographies in support of universal precise positioning to unlock the next generation of navigation applications,” said Swift CEO Tim Harris.
San Francisco-based Swift’s core markets include precise positioning technology for automotive ADAS and autonomy, industrial machine control, commercial transportation, mobile and emerging mass-market applications.
Earlier this week, Swift said its Skylark GNSS service scored high against competitors (see table below) in an independent study from industry expert Mike Horton, who focused on providers covering the continental United States—rather than survey-grade networks.
Swift said since its Series C Round of financing, the company has expanded coverage, particularly in applications that require higher levels of autonomy. The company said it’s now “powering several of the largest automotive and commercial vehicle fleets on the road today.”
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Intergeo More Than Survey Products
Just about every location company is exhibiting at this week’s Intergeo 2022 in Essen, Germany. However, in what used to be known as just a GNSS survey meeting, organizers have expanded it to include location services, mapping and a strong UAV presence.
At the conference, Rx Networks announced the integration of its TruePoint.io precision location services with Qualcomm’s QCOM 0.00 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 and Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile Platforms. The TruePoint.io integration allows Android smartphones to achieve enhanced location accuracy down to a meter or less, the company said. Some use cases include rideshare, micro-mobility, health and fitness and automotive lane-level applications.
TruePoint.io is scheduled to be available on Snapdragon mobile platforms initially in China in the fourth quarter of 2022 and globally in 2023.
RX also named John Carley as new CEO at Intergeo. Carley, who was the company’s vice president of sales and marketing, replaces Michael Longinotti, who also served as CFO. Longinotti is retiring on Jan. 1, 2023.
Overall, Integeo is still a place where traditional survey companies roll out new products. San Jose, Calif.-based JAVAD GNSS introduced its TRIUMPH-1M Plus and T3-NR smart antennas at the conference. In addition, the company also launched its Victor-2 and Victor-4 field tablets.
In other conference news:
TOPODRONE, a Swiss-based designer and manufacturer of lidar equipment, launched AQUAMAPPER, a UAV-based solution for bathymetric surveying and marine construction.
Two Quick Updates About Advertising
So I have two updates regarding advertising in this newsletter:
Every webinar we have sponsored nearly doubled registrations and attendance.
I’m probably going to raise my sponsorship rates starting in January 2023. When I originally set those rates, I had 8,000 subscribers, and by January I’ll likely be up to 16,000 (my trade magazine competitors crow about having 8,000 email subscribers and charge 6x more for an ad).
Why does this matter to you? Well, if you were even contemplating the idea of buying an ad, now is the best time to do so, because my ad rates are significantly underpriced. You’ll probably never get this type of opportunity again. Go here for advertising rates.
Other Location News:
News tip? Send them to kdennehy@driverlessreport.com. Go to www.locationbusinessnews.com for more news and an archive of stories.
Top News:
💰 Hyundai Motor To Invest $13 Billion in Software, Connect 20 Million Vehicles. “South Korea's Hyundai Motor announced Thursday that it will work on connecting a total of 20 million vehicles by 2025 to a software platform that would allow more personalized services to the drivers. The Seoul-based company said that it plans to invest $13 billion through 2030 in its global software center.”
🙁 TomTom Shares Fall as 2023 Uncertainties Outweigh Q3 Beat. “Dutch navigation and digital mapping company TomTom [TOM2.AS] cut its cash flow target for 2023, citing inflationary pressures and economic uncertainty, sending its shares tumbling 12 percent despite better than expected third-quarter performance.”
😲 Volkswagen to Invest $2.3 Billion in China Autonomous Driving Venture. “Volkswagen AG will invest €2.4 billion euros ($2.3 billion) to set up an autonomous driving joint venture with China’s Horizon Robotics Inc.”
😮 Intel's Mobileye Seeks Drastically Lower $16 Billion Valuation in IPO. Intel's INTC 0.00 Mobileye said on Tuesday it was targeting a valuation of nearly $16 billion in its initial public offering, less than a third of what it had previously expected, as volatility in stock markets and rising interest rates dampen the appetite for new listings.”
Maps:
🗺 The Curse of Gerrymandering — & the Mapping Software Behind It.
😉 Waze Wants to Zombify Your In-car Navigation Experience This Halloween. “This Halloween season, Waze says you can side with an expert zombie survivalist and dodge hordes of virtual zombies. Immerse yourself in this experience by selecting the Survivalist mood, the Escapemobile car, and the Survivalist voice directions.”
🙂 what3words signs auto deals:
Connected and Autonomous Vehicles:
👌 BMW Will Be the First Automaker To Use Amazon Web Services' Cloud Platform. “BMW will be the first automaker to use Amazon Web Services’ cloud software to manage data from its connected vehicles. BMW says it has roughly 20 million connected vehicles on the road today.”
👍 Volvo Plans on Lidar Sensors in All New Cars for Improved Safety.
🚗 Why Cruise Is Making Its Own Chips, and a Lot More Besides. “Cruise couldn’t see a way to launch its autonomous ride-hailing without doing more of the work itself. The result is that the C7 board is 90 percent cheaper, has a 70 percent reduction in mass, and uses 60 percent less power than chips provided by a supplier.”
Location Industry Briefs
Send your news releases to kdennehy@driverlessreport.com. Go to www.locationbusinessnews.com for more news and an archive of stories
15 Automakers Select HERE’s ISA Map
HERE Technologies announced at the Paris Motor Show that 30 brands from 15 global automakers has selected its ISA Map data to comply with the European Union’s Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) regulation. Here’s location data, used in 170 million vehicles worldwide, features in-vehicle safety that displays the legal speed limit on any given EU roadway, the company said.
An estimated 50 million vehicles across the EU could be equipped with speed limit data from HERE by 2024, the company said. Some customers include its shareholders, Jaguar Land Rover, Scania and VinFast.
Contact: Sebastian Kurme, HERE Technologies, 49 173 515 3549, sebastian.kurme@here.com.
Phillips Connect Asset Tracking Available on Geotab Marketplace
Geotab and Phillips Connect announced that StealthNet and SolarNet asset tracking and management solutions are now available through the Geotab Marketplace Order Now program. The Phillips’ units provide visibility into location and status of small vehicles and heavy equipment with high-performance tracking, the company said. Geotab and Phillips Connect began their partnership in 2019. Geotab launched the Order Now program in 2021, allowing users access to marketplace solutions directly within the MyGeotab platform, the company said.
Contact: Geotab, www.geotab.com.
Geoforce Rolls Out Two New Asset Trackers
Geoforce has announced the launch of two new asset trackers that offer cost-effective coverage options, strong battery life and durability with Zone 0 certification for safe operation. The GT2c and the GT2h asset tracking devices are now available in Australia and New Zealand.
The new GT2c device operates on LTE-M low-power cellular IoT networks, offering a solution for operators using assets in cellular service range and who want cost-effective tracking, the company said. The new GT2h device provides a unique hybrid solution that operates on cellular networks, but automatically switches to global Iridium-powered satellite connectivity if cellular coverage is lost.
Contact: Maddison Tailor, Geoforce, (469) 421-2487 ext. 1009, mtailor@geoforce.com, https://geoforce.com.
Zebra Introduces New PartnerConnect Location and Tracking
Zebra Technologies Corp. ZBRA 0.00 has announced a PartnerConnect Location and Tracking Specialization for partners focused on selling RFID and real-time location systems (RTLS). Developed as a strategic component of the company’s PartnerConnect program, the new Location and Tracking Specialization provides resellers with the tools they need to drive RFID and RTLS sales, the company said. Qualified program members will have access to business-building benefits including pre-qualified leads, growth incentives, discounts on stock RFID label offerings, go-to-market support, marketing funding, increased channel account management and planning as well as a customizable logo recognizing their expertise in the industry, the company said.
Contact: Bill Abelson, Zebra Technologies, (631) 738-4751, bill.abelson@zebra.com, www.zebra.com.
Faction Partners With GoCar Tours
Faction Technology and GoCar Tours have partnered to develop driverless deployment of GoCar EV Sport vehicles, based on the FUV platform from Arcimoto $FUV. Equipped with Faction’s DriveLink and TeleAssist technologies, the driverless GoCar EVs combine autonomy with remote human teleoperation, the company said.
The driverless vehicle platform retains the GoCar EV Sport capabilities with up to 100 miles of city range, and includes patented GoCar Network technology and the GPS-based GoCar mobile tour guide, the company said.
Contact: Faction, press@faction.us, www.faction.us.
Otonomo Partners With SAP
Otonomo Technologies Ltd. OTMO 0.00 has announced the integration of its Smart Mobility Data Platform with SAP Digital Vehicle Hub. The integration will help enable businesses to derive new insights for fleet management and maintenance based on connected vehicle data, drive future mobility business models, and generate new value and revenue streams, the company said. SAP Digital Vehicle Hub is a based on its Business Network for Asset Management enhanced for the automotive industry.
Contact: Juliet McGinnis, Otonomo, press@otonomo.io, www.otonomo.io.
JAVAD GNSS Opens European Office
JAVAD GNSS has announced that it is opening a European office in Vilnius, Lithuania, to support growth for professional and industrial applications. More than 100 international companies including Google, Revolut, Uber and Thermo Fisher have offices in Vilnius, which JAVAD GNSS says has a business-friendly environment.
“This new European office will support our rapid growth, product development activities and further accelerate our strategic agenda of becoming a leading GNSS supplier,” said Gary Walker, company executive vice president.
Contact: Andrew Scott, JAVAD GNSS, (408) 816-9713, a.scott@javad.com.
WIIO to Partner With Quuppa
Location company Quuppa has partnered with WIIO to offer customers real-time location technology to track people and assets, the companies say. The joint products, along with an IRIIS software suite, will allow customers to collect, manage and analyze data.
Potential markets include logistics, Industry 4.0, healthcare, smart buildings and retail.
Contact: Sari Arjamo-Tuominen, Quuppa, sari.arjamo-tuominen@quuppa.com, www.quuppa.com.
Teledyne Launches UAV Lidar and Camera System
Teledyne Geospatial has announced the Optech CLS-A, a new survey-grade UAV lidar and camera system. The Optech CLS-A enables surveying and inspection applications, the company said.
The CLS-A can be integrated onto a variety of UAV platforms—depending upon the user’s preference. The integration can be completed with as little as power, an isolated mechanical mount, and a GNSS Antenna, the company said.
Contact: Jennifer Parham, Teledyne Geospatial, Jennifer.Parham@teledyne.com.
Inpixon Grabs Purchase Orders in Third Quarter
Inpixon INPX 0.00 has secured new purchase orders since the beginning of the third quarter of 2022 for its industrial IoT products and services. The company said it earned a purchase order from “one of the largest electronics distributors in the world.” The company also received an order, through partner Schauenburg Systems, to incorporate real-time location awareness into collision avoidance.
Contact: Inpixon, marketing@inpoxon.com, www.inpixon.com.
BRINC Ball Has Location Capabilities
BRINC has launched its BRINC Ball, a two-way communications device built to enhance de-escalation capabilities of first responders. BRINC Ball is a tool for officers and search teams who want to establish and maintain contact for peaceful resolutions, the company said.
BRINC Ball works as a ruggedized throw phone. Allowing agencies to view its GPS location, the ball can be thrown into areas that first responders cannot reach with a microphone and listening capabilities.
Contact: David Benowitz, BRINC, david.benowitz@brincdrones.com, https://brincdrones.com/brinc-ball.
MetAlert Partners With Investcore Media Amid Restructuring
MetAlert [GTXOD], which manufactures wearable GPS human and asset tracking systems, has announced it has retained Investcore Media and Strategic Innovations to provide digital marketing services for the patient monitoring industry. The company said it was one of the first to bring GPS wearable technology to the healthcare market.
Contact: Nelson Skip Riddle, MetAlert, 44 7785 364100, nsriddle@metalert.com, www.metalert.com.
Garmin Rolls Out Watch Line
Garmin International GRMN 0.00 launched its second-generation MARQ luxury modern tool watches, which have 16 days of battery life. The MARQ collection includes Garmin’s suite of 24/7 health and wellness features like wrist-based heart rate, respiration and stress tracking and advanced sleep insights.
New to all MARQ watches, the collection includes support for multi-band GNSS, multi-frequency GPS (L1 + L5) and Garmin SatIQ technology, which secures positioning accuracy
Contact: Natalie Miller, Garmin, (913) 397-8200, media.relations@garmin.com.
Government Agencies Can Purchase Verizon Fleet Management
Government agencies can now purchase fleet management platform Verizon Connect Reveal VZ 0.00 through the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) program. Government agencies can now streamline processes, pricing and contracts by purchasing Verizon Connect Reveal on GSA contracts.
Contact: Krys Grondorf, Verizon, krys.grondorf@verizon.com, www.verizon.com.
Amazfit Rolls Out GPS Sports Watch
Amazfit ZEPP 0.00 has introduced its first ever premium multi-sport GPS watch, the Amazfit Falcon. It features a titanium unibody, sapphire crystal glass screen and GPS tracking.
The watch offers accurate dual-band GPS tracking, support for six satellite positioning systems and supports the importing of route files via the Zepp App, for real-time navigation, the company said.
Contact: Amazfit, www.amazfit.com.
Airbiquity Launches Product for Two-Wheelers
Airbiquity has launched OTAmatic mLink for two-wheeler original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) that eliminates the need for embedded telematic control units (TCUs) to deliver vehicle-to-cloud connectivity for over-the-air (OTA) software updates. OTAmatic enables the secure delivery and installation of OTA software updates for vehicle maintenance, feature upgrades, and consumer personalization, the company said.
Contact: Frances Bigley, for Airbiquity, airbiquity@finnpartners.com, www.airbiquity.com.
People
Pozyx has appointed Rick Graham as CEO. Graham was the company’s North America president where he oversaw record sales.
Jobs
Chief Technology Officer. Ridar Systems.
Product Manager Positioning Products, INR. u-blox.
Product Communications Manager. Parkopedia.
Product Planning and Innovation Analyst. SBD Automotive.
Financial Assistant. NavInfo.
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