A Cincinnati startup that’s on a mission to digitize the world’s underground has closed its first round of seed funding since launching in mid-2018.
Subterra AI, which uses advanced technology to map, inspect and manage underground infrastructure like sewer systems and more, recently closed a $1.42 million seed round led by London-based XTX Ventures, the venture capital arm of XTX Markets, with participation from San Francisco’s Anorak Ventures and other strategic investors.
The company said it will use the funding to accelerate growth of its proprietary cloud and AI platform throughout the North American market and expand its team, adding engineering, analytics and sales marketing talent.
Terralytics, Subterra’s software-as-a-service, or SaaS, cloud platform, works with any inspection device specifically developed for underground infrastructure including sewers, manholes and other structures. The company is also able to “inspect the uninspected” with its SewerScout, a floating drone that can map large diameter sewers.
Subterra’s founder and CEO Robert Lee said the tech solves a huge unmet need. In 2017, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S. sewer system a D+ rating. Current methods and funding for inspecting infrastructure is limited, expanding the gap between fixed and failing assets.
“We've seen many companies succeed in mapping above ground, but no one is dominating the underground space,” Lee said in a release. “There’s a proliferation of drones, photogrammetry, LIDAR and cloud offerings for construction, agriculture and real estate — but until we developed Terralytics, no one has successfully adapted the technology for underground infrastructure.”
Subterra’s mapping technology captures data similar to Google’s Street View. It uses geospatial, computer vision and AI to digitize, inspect and report on underground infrastructure in a more efficient and cost-effective way. The idea is to help protect against failing underground infrastructure by capturing extensive intelligence for utilities to make more informed decisions.
“It is extremely satisfying to be able to help our clients see the condition of previously never before seen underground pipes using our technology,” he said.
Lee told me the platform is still in beta testing but the company has paying clients. Its technology has been deployed in Los Angeles, Chicago, North Carolina, throughout the Midwest and initially in Australia.
Subterra is currently in discussions with clients in Virginia, Texas and all over the world.
“Other AI companies coming into the industry are focused on just providing a software solution, leaving the client needing to still collect the data at an enormous cost,” he added. “We disrupted the market by providing low-cost rapid scanning solutions that map out the underground using our proprietary 3D engine that feed into our cloud AI platform. The end result gives actionable data to the client and builds a digital twin of the underground network for ongoing monitoring and planning.”
Subterra, founded in May 2018, graduated from University of Cincinnati’s Venture Lab, a pre-accelerator program, in 2020. The company is based at Over-the-Rhine’s Union Hall and is currently a team of 12. Prior to its seed round, Lee had raised about $35,000 from angel investors.
Alexandre Perrin, head of XTX Ventures, said XTX liked Subterra’s mission — digitizing underground infrastructure through 3D mapping. That will help network owners identify likely issues earlier, which in turn will prevent higher repair costs.
“(Subterra)…has the potential to become the go-to platform for all underground inspections globally,” Perrin said.
