About a decade ago, brothers Aviv and Matteo Shapira founded a company called Replay, which developed a video format for 360-degree replays — the kind of replays that have become part and parcel of major sports broadcasts. .
Replay caught the attention of Intel, which acquired the company for one in 2016. Reported $175 million, and took Aviv and Matteo to a chance meeting with Ruby Liani, the founder of Israel’s official Drone Racing League (FRIL).
Liani turned the brothers on to drone racing—and planted the seed of the idea for their next venture, extend, Which he helped to find.
“As founders, we saw an opportunity to bridge the gap between our experiences,” Aviv told TechCrunch. “We recognized the extraordinary skills required to control advanced robots, especially drones. Our vision was to develop technology that would make controlling these robots intuitive and accessible, similar to how users interact with smartphones without the need for in-depth technical knowledge.”
Xtend provides a platform that lets operators manage drones and robots that are developed in-house by Xtend and third-party vendors. With Xtend’s platform, operators can directly control drones and robots — optionally with a VR headset — or train AI models to deploy on drones that identify objects and indoor/outdoor environments. Strings help navigate the environment. Today, the company announced a $40 million funding round led by Chartered Group at a post-money valuation of approximately $110 million.
“Our platform empowers drones and robots to handle specific tasks autonomously, such as entering buildings and scanning floors,” said Aviv. “Essentially, it allows ‘common sense’ decisions – such as judging situations or adapting to unforeseen circumstances – to remain in the hands of human supervisors.”
Xtend allows operators to orchestrate teams of drones and robots — not just individual machines — and allow them to perform certain tasks autonomously, such as moving from waypoint to waypoint. At all times, Xtend analyzes data from past deployments to recommend actions for the operator to take.
“Xos empowers a single supervisor to supervise a team of robots that are simultaneously performing tasks in different locations,” said Aviv. “We believe that full autonomy is not the ultimate goal, but a subset of capabilities.”
Xtend pitches its technology as general-purpose, aimed at customers in industries ranging from public safety to logistics. But the company leans heavily into military, defense and law enforcement applications.
Xtend has contracts with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the US Department of Defense to “develop and supply its systems”, including Drone Interceptor SystemFor “Operational Assessment” – including A $9 million contract with the Pentagon’s Office of Illegal Warfare. And Aviv is not shy about the company’s ambitions to move into “new civil market opportunities” such as private and public security.
“Imagine a police officer contacting drones to search for a suspect,” Aveo said. “Xos can empower these professionals to take advantage of robotic assistance.”
This could be problematic, given that regulations are still largely lacking. For law enforcement use, And drones have been used to monitor legal protests — for example, in 2020, congressional Democrats raised the alarm that then-President Donald Trump’s administration had planned drone strikes in Las Vegas, Minneapolis, and Washington, D.C. Drones and spy planes were used to monitor the protests. According to Al Jazeera.
In addition, Xtend has recently found itself in the crosshairs of international monitors.
State Watch and Militarization Information Center (IMI) found Among other Israeli military companies and institutions involved in the deployment of drones, Xtend received an R&D grant from the EU’s Horizon Europe fund, despite a ban on EU funding for military and defense projects.
Abib has taken a staunchly pro-Israel stance in the country’s ongoing war with Hamas. say Ctech that Xtend has “redirected energies to support the IDF 100%.” On its website, which includes testimonials from Israeli soldiers in Gaza, Xtend says it “enables soldiers to perform precise maneuvers in complex combat scenarios.”
In one The interview With The Wall Street Journal , Aviv said Xtend has been working with the IDF for some time — initially to shoot down incendiary balloons released from the Gaza Strip. Since then, its drones have been used to map and detect underground tunnels dug by Hamas in Gaza — and, more dangerously, to send them on reconnaissance missions. has gone Equipped with an explosive payload such as a grenade.
Controversial as it is, the strategy seems to be working for Xtend’s business. The company says it has won $50 million in contracts to date across its customer base of “more than 50” organizations, including government defense agencies.
“We are unlocking the true potential of robotics in complex scenarios, including first response, search and rescue and critical infrastructure inspections,” said Aviv. “Hundreds of Xtend’s drone and robotics systems are already operationally deployed around the world, and we are continually developing Xos and the platform to deliver the future of human-machine teaming.
With the new funding, which brings Xtend’s total funding to $65 million, Xtend plans to expand its 110-person workforce by 50% by the end of the year across the US, Israel and Singapore as it will be transferred to the platform collection. A service and software as a service sales model. On the roadmap is international expansion with a particular focus on Japan.
Credit : techcrunch.com
