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Relay Robotics, formerly Savioke, develops autonomous service robots for automated indoor deliveries. The Relay robot navigates human environments like hotels and hospitals, using advanced sensors for reliable, secure, and contact-free item transport. This technology integrates robotic assistance into daily operations, enhancing efficiency.
Founded in 2013 as Savioke by Steve Cousins, Adrian Canoso, Dave Robson, Izumi Yaskawa, Jon Binney, and Tessa Lau, Cousins oversaw creation of the Robot Operating System (ROS) at Willow Garage. Their founding insight: improve lives by automating routine delivery tasks in service industries with autonomous robots.
Relay Robotics primarily serves hospitality and healthcare, with robots delivering amenities or medical supplies. Its mission is to augment human capabilities, elevating service quality and efficiency. Automating logistics frees staff for higher-value responsibilities, improving satisfaction for employees and end-users.
Savioke has raised $17.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Savioke has raised $17.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Savioke is a technology company specializing in autonomous delivery robots, primarily the Relay robot, designed for safe, contact-free deliveries in human environments like hotels, hospitals, and offices.[1][2][3] It serves hospitality, healthcare, foodservice, and office sectors by solving labor shortages and repetitive tasks—such as delivering toiletries, meals, or linens—allowing staff to focus on customer service and boosting efficiency with features like obstacle avoidance, elevator operation, and low costs via in-house hardware/software.[1][2][5] The company has demonstrated strong growth, completing over 51,000 deliveries early on (by 2016) and hundreds of thousands worldwide later, with deployments in over 40 U.S. companies and expansions like Relay+ (50% higher payload, configurable shelves/drawers).[1][2][3] Savioke pioneered a robots-as-a-service (RaaS) model, enabling easy adoption without capital expenditure hurdles, and raised $30.8M across 5 funding rounds.[2][3]
Savioke was founded in September 2013 (some sources note 2014) in San Jose, California, by Steve Cousins—former CEO of Willow Garage robotics lab—alongside Willow alumni like Izumi Yaskawa, backed by investors including Google Ventures and Recruit Holdings.[1][2][5][6] The idea emerged from advances in robotics and AI to automate simple manual tasks, starting with the Relay robot piloted in a 2014 Cupertino hotel trial for room service deliveries.[1][5] Early traction built quickly: by 2016, Relay had handled 51,000+ deliveries across 40+ U.S. companies, mainly hotels, with Recruit's investment accelerating hotel-focused expansion.[1] Steve Cousins highlighted the team's AI and autonomous vehicle expertise as key to reliability.[2]
Savioke rides the autonomous mobile robots (AMR) wave, fueled by AI, robotics maturity, and post-pandemic demand for contactless, labor-saving tech amid shortages in service industries.[1][2][3] Timing aligns with hospitality/healthcare needs—hotels for guest delight, hospitals for secure workflows (e.g., large fleet potential in 20-50 site systems)—while market forces like rising wages and productivity pressures favor RaaS scalability.[2] It influences the ecosystem by proving AMRs in real-world human settings, inspiring expansions into foodservice, real estate security, and beyond, with Relay's ROS foundation advancing open robotics standards.[2][5]
Savioke transitioned to Relay Robotics, acquiring its R&D and Relay line to sustain focus on hospitality/healthcare while targeting hospital fleets, restaurants, and security use cases with enhanced reliability.[2][6] Next steps likely include Relay+ rollouts, vacuuming add-ons, and larger deployments leveraging AI for new tasks. Trends like AI-driven autonomy and RaaS growth will propel it, potentially evolving from hotel pioneer to multi-sector leader as labor challenges persist—building on its delivery robot legacy to redefine service robotics.
Savioke has raised $17.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Savioke's investors include Bascom Ventures, Fabric Ventures, General Catalyst, IVP, Morado Venture Partners, Raine Ventures, Felix Jahn, Maximilian Tayenthal, 14W, AME Cloud Ventures, GV, Hardware Club.
Savioke has raised $17.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $15.0M Series A in January 2016.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1, 2016 | $15.0M Series A | Bascom Ventures, Fabric Ventures, General Catalyst, IVP, Morado Venture Partners, Raine Ventures, Felix Jahn, Maximilian Tayenthal | |
| Apr 1, 2014 | $2.0M Seed | 14W, AME Cloud Ventures, Bascom Ventures, Fabric Ventures, General Catalyst, GV, Hardware Club, IVP, Morado Venture Partners, Raine Ventures, Softbank Group, Visionaire Ventures, Andy Bechtolsheim, Bill Tai, Felix Jahn, Maximilian Tayenthal, Michael Birch |