China-based drone delivery specialist Antwork Technology has scooped up a cool $314 million in Series B funding. The fresh capital infusion was led by Thor Capital with participation from existing investor Unity Ventures.
Antwork was established in 2015 with a vision to build a drone delivery network in urban areas since its founders believed that rural residents may be unwilling to pay the premium for aerial deliveries.
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In the years since, the startup has designed and developed two multirotor drones with 20 km range and up to 5 kg payload capacity; a drone port for autonomous landing and takeoff; an uncrewed hub station equipped with a drone port and cargo storage boxes; and a cloud-based aerial traffic management system and scheduling software to automate cargo delivery.
In 2019, the Civil Aviation Administration of China awarded the company with the country’s first license for urban drone deliveries. Antwork used the opportunity to trial delivery logistics with food giants such as KFC and Starbucks. But once COVID-19 struck, it began to focus more on medical drone deliveries including the aerial transportation of critical supplies and blood for emergency transfusion.
Antwork CEO Zhang Lei sees the Series B funding as nothing short of an achievement. In a statement, the company says:
In the post-COVID era, changes in the social environment have had a great impact on the global economy and investment behavior. The investment recognition obtained by Antwork Technology in this environment expresses the market’s confidence in the development of Antwork.
The drone delivery company is now looking for partners in Europe and the Middle East.
Read more: Japan-based Drone Fund invests in drone delivery firm Wingcopter
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