Arkeus, an Australian optical autonomy company developing AI-powered hardware for autonomous drones and aircraft, announced it has raised AUD $4.45 million in seed funding.
The round was led by deep tech venture capital firm Main Sequence, with participation from Steve Baxter from Beaten Zone Venture Partners and Salus Ventures. The new funding will help Arkeus scale manufacturing and enhance the capabilities of its core product suite, the Hyperspectral Optical Radar (HS-OR), which is designed to give customers the ability to ‘see’, understand and act on their environment in real time.
In high-risk environments like defence and search and rescue operations, first responders need to make split-second decisions based on their knowledge of the landscape, objects and people around them. Yet too often, those decisions rely on systems built decades ago that capture only a narrow visual range, are blinded by darkness or weather, and require extensive and time-consuming manual analysis before any recommendations can be made.
Arkeus’ optical systems are built from the ground up for modern operating environments, giving responders the ability to ‘see’ and respond in real time, using data from a wide range of visible and non-visible light spectra with autonomous capabilities capable of real-time detection, recognition and tracking of relevant people and objects in complex environments.
Arkeus was founded in Melbourne by Olsen, a defence expert, and aerospace engineer Jonathan Nebauer after witnessing the challenges posed by existing equipment.
hardware-enabled software. Our technology is customised and optimised to operate in the most adverse conditions, with minimal to no human involvement. Our job is to extract the hardest to get information from the most challenging environments, quickly.”
Since its founding in Melbourne three years ago, Arkeus has secured multiple defence contracts for its autonomous optics technology, validating the company’s approach and unlocking opportunities across both public sector and commercial applications. Beyond defence, the company’s AI-powered customisable systems can be applied to tasks like disaster recovery, search and rescue missions, border security, and more.
Alezeia Brown, Investment Manager at Main Sequence said We were impressed by Arkeus’ ability to build a thriving company in Melbourne during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a short time, they have developed market-leading products, secured major contracts, and shown the versatility to solve operational needs in both defence and commercial sectors. Their novel approach of combining hyperspectral imaging, radar, and AI has tremendous potential to save lives by giving first responders greater situational awareness.”
Arkeus is initially focused on use cases in search, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions including in defence, search and rescue, firefighting and police operations. The seed funding will enable Arkeus to scale up production of its HS-OR systems and continue R&D into new capabilities. To support its continued growth, Arkeus is also actively hiring additional technical staff in mechatronics and engineering at its Melbourne headquarters.
Arkeus CEO and co-founder Simon Olsen
In high consequence situations where every second counts, defence and emergency responders are often hampered by outdated sensors built for a narrow range of light wavelengths. Arkeus is pioneering a new way of sensing, built from the ground up to overcome these limitations and deliver mission-critical information at the point of contact.
Steve Baxter, Investor and Founder at Beaten Zone Venture Partners
Arkeus has already demonstrated itself as a standout Australian company providing crucial, cutting-edge technology for defence worldwide. Simon, Jonathan and the entire Arkeus team should be immensely proud of the advancements they have achieved so far. As their growth continues, Beaten Zone Venture Partners looks forward to remaining strong partners and champions of Arkeus’ groundbreaking work into the future.
Salus Ventures Managing Director Mike Ferrari
Arkeus’ autonomous optical systems have the potential to revolutionise the search, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance landscape, providing critical information in challenging environments. Their rapid innovation and domain expertise make them a global leader in the field.
