Nautilus Labs has raised $34 million in a new Series B funding round, led by Microsoft’s venture fund M12 and the Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, taking the firm’s total raised capital to date to over $48 million.
“Microsoft is committed to accelerating global progress towards a more sustainable future and supporting our partners to deliver outcomes that go beyond exceptional financial returns to drive catalytic environmental and social impact,” said Mark Kroese, General Manager, Sustainability Solutions at Microsoft.
“That’s why M12 and the Climate Innovation Fund are co-investing for the first time in Nautilus, a business that can be both high-growth and deliver on significant decarbonisation targets at scale.”
Nautilus says it will use the investment to develop and deploy new product capabilities that support clients in their digital decarbonisation initiatives, attracting fresh tech talent and opening new offices in key shipping hubs worldwide alongside its existing New York, Singapore, Paris and London offices.
The company’s flagship Voyage Optimization software leverages machine learning-based predictions to reduce fuel waste and emissions while maximising returns by analysing IoT data, weather patterns, arrival and departure times, and commercial requirements, and then supplying predictive decision support recommendations to vessel crews.
“Economic efficiency and environmental efficiency are best solved in unison. Today, we’re able to empower ocean shipping companies with a path to creating the most profitable business – that at the same time helps them reduce carbon intensity immediately,” said Matt Heider, Chief Executive Officer at Nautilus Labs.
“The firms winning in the market are mobilising resources now to adopt a collaborative, data-driven approach to transforming their voyages. By focusing on the underlying economics, they’re stripping wasted fuel and time out of their operations.”
“The potential for Voyage Optimization is huge: our clients have seen 10-12% savings per journey, with overall savings potential reaching up to 30%, as we address the root cause of this hurry-up-to-wait paradigm. We’re excited to leverage this funding to grow our crew around the world and continue to solve this global problem with a great deal of urgency.”
The Series B funding round also saw participation from new and existing investors including NSS Advisors, Systemiq Capital, Root Ventures, Quiet Capital, TMV, and Amplifier.
