As companies like Nvidia and Softbank make industrial robotics a focus of future R&D, a startup today raises funds for another aspect of AI using it in factory rooms. Augury developed AI-based hardware that measures vibration, sound, temperature and other factors to understand how the machine works (to identify when repairs are needed and what problems are there) raised $72.5 million in funding, it The funds will be raised both to attract new customers and to continue to develop their technology.

To date, the company has monitored over a billion hours of machine operations, covering a wide variety of equipment manufacturers and processes. "We are already the largest data set for mechanical signals," CEO and founder Saar Yoskovitz said in an interview, calling this information a "difference dictionary."

“We were at the time, if you had pumps in your factory, we didn’t need to build models for your specific machine because we’ve seen over 20,000 pumps before,” he said.

The equity investment is the first in the F-Series F, which the company has not yet completely closed. Yoskovitz said the final amount could be about $100 million and the round should be completed in the next few months. He declined to comment on the valuation, only confirming that it was an upward move, more than $1 billion.

Lightrock is taking part in the latest round with former supporters. The list includes Insight Venture Partners, Eclipse Ventures, Munich Re Venture Capital, Qualcomm Ventures, Lerer Hippeau Ventures and Qumra Capital, an Israel-based late-stage venture capital firm (Augury was founded in Haifa in the city of Haifa and now owns in New York. The second HQ) leads the $55 million round in 2020.

Since the last fundraising in 2021, Augusty's salary increase has risen fivefold in revenues following a strong wave of business, including major manufacturing companies such as Pepsi, Nestlé and DuPont, as well as a long list of companies in a range of companies. Establish a partnership with Baker Hughes, one of the previous strategic investors, the main service provider in the energy sector.

As Yoskovitz describes, the Covid-19 pandemic has really made supply chains a focus around the world. But while all the discussion about "digital transformation" is on an industrial level, the cycle will always be longer - longer - because expensive equipment is rarely stripped off while still in operation. Even if it's still working for a large extent, it only needs some fixes. In an industrial environment, a typical life cycle can be extended to decades.

This is where Augury goes into the picture: The company has built sensors that effectively sit or sit side by side with the machine or are associated with it to listen and observe how they work, and it has been using that data to train its algorithms to Understand when it doesn't work and what might be wrong.

This then becomes a guide for humans who can repair machines. These people can replace these people by fixing robots, but they still need data to understand what to do, regardless of how many people or robots there, Augury extends its data playback to factories of the future.

But for the moment, it sounds like Augury is more modern (but usually without robotics).

Argury, Augury's technology is another example of how AI can take jobs from people, but Yoskovitz makes a different view:

"The biggest challenge is actually a talent shortage," he said. "There is a gap. There is an aging workforce and all experts will retire in the next five to six years. At the same time, the next generation is not because no one wants to do manufacturing. Industry."

He added that when they do come in, they will know less of the generation than before, because they will be more interchangeable and more responsible (due to less of them).

Augury's solution is "digital knowledge" to help factories, as well as those working in it, and then repair their equipment.

Lightrock, the chief investor of this round, focused on sustainable investment, which has become an interesting area last year - not because of opportunity and optimism, but the other way around.

Paul Murphy, general partner of Lightspeed, summed up the situation well in a passionate argument, saying "RIP climate technology" effectively says that it is a startup and Investor days. Sustainability itself is a selfless goal.

The next phase, for those who want to continue to put their money into their sustainability goals, there is a need to focus on solving this problem, but only while building a solid business, no matter what.

This is actually where Augury sits and one of the reasons why Lightrock invests.

Essentially, building technology to help manufacturers use their devices longer is the ideal of green, he said.

"Even today, this is surprising, but machines installed in factories have been running for 20 or 40 years. It's a huge capital expenditure involvement, so they won't change many parts in the factory. They won't tear up and completely replace the machine,” said Ashish Puri, a company partner who led the deal. The company labels sustainability as a key focus of investment, while Puri describes it more specifically as “sustainable capitalism.”

“Augury is a great example of a business that combines productivity with a green approach,” he said.