Airspace, a logistics startup, almost doubled its capital in a new round of venture capital led by DBL partners When the company first entered the market, it mainly handled transportation in emergency situations, including organ transplantation and life-saving drugs. It is reported that DBL partners is an influential investment company and was an early investor of Tesla.
This round of $70 million financing -- including new investors Telstra ventures and HarbourVest and existing investors scale ventures, defy ventures, Qualcomm ventures and ProLogis ventures -- brings the total capital of airspace to $138 million.
This investment shows that logistics start-ups have grown rapidly in the era of pandemics as global supply chain problems lead to new opportunities for disruptive business models. With the addition of DBL partners, which focuses on "double bottom line" investment, it also improves the position of sustainable development in the business model of logistics companies and the whole global supply chain.
Airspace pointed out in a press release that many of its largest customers are increasingly concerned about carbon neutrality.
IRA ehrenpreis, founder and managing partner of DBL partners, said in a press release: "airspace is unique in that it provides a fully transparent carbon footprint for time critical delivery and enables customers to optimize routes with as little environmental impact as possible."
Ehrenpreis is a member of Tesla's board of directors. DBL has invested in several solar companies (including SolarCity, which is now part of Tesla) and Musk's SpaceX.
Joel Hwang, head of HarbourVest, also won a seat on airspace's board.
Airspace uses AI and machine learning to optimize delivery opportunities around the world. It provides real-time data about goods - up to 16000 "touchpoints".
Founded in 2016, the company has offices in Carlsbad, Dallas, Stockholm and Amsterdam, California. It reported an increase of 110% last year, and said it is expected to reach this growth rate this year.
"As supply chain disruptions continue to affect countries around the world, time critical shipping and logistics have never been more important in history to ensure that these complex and sensitive goods arrive at their destinations on time," airspace co-founder and CEO Nick bulcao said in a press release
In addition, airspace has noticed that when many commercial aircraft take off, the capacity utilization of cargo tanks is very low, which is one of the data it can track and use, so as to find alternative transportation solutions for customers.
Airspace coo Ben kozy said in a recent interview: "historically, if you just need regular transportation, then transportation by sea, road or railway is enough, but with all these interruptions, a large number of people who used to transport by sea have turned to air transportation."
Suppliers and shippers have shifted their mindset towards relying on a single mode of transport.
Kozy said that the global supply chain has just been hit by the pandemic, labor shortage and the growth of consumer demand for products, all of which have eliminated the relative certainty of logistics, and suppliers are scrambling to find new transportation media.
It is understood that this fund will be used to strengthen airspace's attention to Europe and Asia and customers in new time sensitive industries, including semiconductors, automobiles and clean technology. According to airspace, Europe accounts for more than 10% of its revenue - up from 1.5% in 2020. Currently, the company operates in 134 countries.
"Our goal is to deliver the most packages to any destination, regardless of size," bulcao said at the press conference.
So far, airspace has completed more than one million shipments.
Over the past two years, the global auto industry has been hit by a number of chip shortages, which has forced factories of mainstream carmakers to temporarily shut down. Earlier this month, Ford said that the chip shortage that plagued the industry continued, and the carmaker was forced to prioritize ship supply for the most demanding models.
Although its roots lie in the medical market, kozy pointed out that with the development of airspace, it allows more customers to define what is "crucial" to their business. The inherent need to move organs quickly for transplantation is a business model that can now be applied to the shutdown of automobile manufacturers' factories due to parts not arriving. "The key is the time limit it needs to deliver," kozy said.
Recently, airspace has also found a market in different projects such as high-end coffins, high-end aprons and hot bathtubs.
"Once the customer makes a decision, our model enables us to act quickly within 24 hours," kozy said.