Robot delivery specialist Starship Technologies raises $90 million and reveals global expansion plans

Starship Technologies, a company that puts delivery robots on streets in the US and Europe, has raised $90 million in funding, co-led by Plural and Iconical.

The new funding, which brings the total raised by Starship to $230 million since its creation in 2014, will be used to expand globally.

Starship robots are 99% autonomous and have made six million deliveries so far including takeaway orders to groceries in residential communities and on campuses.

The Starships have landed ‼️ @UofSCstudents, faculty and staff can now order food and drinks for on-campus delivery. Order today on the @Grubhub app🥤🍔

More: https://t.co/waC0zyoQm8@StarshipRobots pic.twitter.com/NA8kvl30PU

— University of South Carolina (@UofSC) February 5, 2024

Ahti Heinla, Co-founder and CEO at Starship Technologies, says: “Autonomous delivery isn’t some science fiction concept from Bladerunner for decades in the future, it’s a reality for hundreds of thousands of people every day.”

“Building a company like Starship takes at least a decade of perfecting the technology, streamlining operations and reducing costs to make last-mile autonomous delivery viable and sustainable at scale.”

“Now we’re ready to take on the world and with ambitions to build a category dominating company that can change the daily lives of millions of people in thousands of locations worldwide.”

Taavet Hinrikus, Partner at Plural, says: “Starship is the global leader in autonomous technology, built in Europe.”

“For the past 10 years, the team have been working tirelessly to build the most advanced autonomous logistics technology in the world, driving more miles and making more deliveries than any other company, whilst reducing the impact of last mile and on-demand delivery on the planet.”

“The culmination of this hard work over the past decade and this new funding means Starship is well positioned for accelerated growth. We’re looking forward to supporting the team on this journey to becoming one of Europe’s most successful global companies.” 

Sandra Beaumont

Sandra Beaumont has taken on the role of Senior Director of Business Development for Europe at Starship Technologies.

In a LinkedIn post, she said: “Looking forward to revolutionising delivery alongside our most amazing team and the coolest robots out there.”

Beaumont was previously Head of UK Business Development at the company and has spent almost eight years there.

Prior to that, she worked at Fits.Me, which is owned by Rakuten.