A fast-growing Charlotte startup recently raised $9.1 million in Series A funding to expand its employee base and enhance its fleet of cleaning drones and pressure-washing robots.
Lucid Bots, formerly Lucid Drone Technologies, announced the capital raise May 8. The round was led by venture capital firm Cubit Capital. It also garnered participation from Idea Fund Partners, Danu Venture Group and existing investors such as Y Combinator's Growth Fund and Gratus Capital.
Andrew Ashur, CEO and co-founder at Lucid Bots, told CBJ the startup's team has been on the "lean" side to help the company be more capital efficient. It has about 35 employees. But with its steady traction since its establishment in 2018, the company is looking to grow that number.
"We've been fortunate in our recruiting journey thus far and hope to continue that momentum," he said. "Now, we can start to build out some really valuable aspects of our team, but also our products that we know customers are excited about."
Lucid Bots emerged into the industry originally with its Sherpa cleaning drones, created to pressure wash the exterior of buildings. To further its mission of eliminating challenges associated with cleaning exterior surfaces, late last year the company launched Lavo Bot.
Ashur said the product's launch came after the company's drone customers voiced interest for a product that could clean flat surfaces such as sidewalks and parking garage floors. Lavo Bots were created with this need in mind, as the ground-based machine can clean up to 70% faster than traditional methods.
Lucid's drones are primarily used for airborne projects, such as cleaning corporate buildings or disinfecting stadiums after games. About 200 clients have bought the Sherpa since the company's creation.
"We've really been able to build the full encompassing suite of robotic solutions for exterior cleaning," he said. "Whether you're cleaning the flat surface of a parking deck, or the exterior of that parking deck, you could use the Lavo Bot or Sherpa."
The company's equity raise will help upgrade the Lavo Bots with data and artificial intelligence features to bring the product to the next level, Ashur said.
Lucid Bots raised the funds by honing in on execution and storytelling. What's key in fundraising, he said, is the evidence of a thriving business.
"At the end of the day, the best story to tell is one that's grounded in revenue, one that's grounded in actual traction and year-over-year growth," he added.
Lucid Bots has raised about $13.5 million in funding since its founding six years ago.
It ranked third last year in the Charlotte Business Journal's 2023 Fast 50 program, which recognizes fast-growing local companies based on revenue growth. Lucid Bots posted an average annual growth rate of 281% over the three-year period between 2020 and 2022.
"Showing that, 'Hey, we're really good at taking investor capital and efficiently growing and providing customer value,' is something that I think has continued to be an uplifting force for us in our fundraising journey," Ashur said.
The company will be unveiling additional updates within its business soon. One example is a digital assistant feature for its robots, which would allow customers to control the machines with their phones or voice.
"We've written a really solid playbook, and our goal is just to keep growing that playbook," Ashur said.
