The Munich-based LiDAR startup Blickfeld has completed its Series A financing round. The financing round is led by Continental's venture capital unit and the Bavarian Growth Fund. Existing investors Fluxunit — Osram Ventures, High-Tech Gründerfonds, TEV (Tengelmann Ventures), and Unternehmertum Venture Capital Partners also participated again.
Blickfeld develops and produces LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensors and software for detecting the surroundings of vehicles, for example. The sensors are used in autonomous driving, as well as in the smart city, industrial, and security sectors, among others. In its three years of existence, the Blickfeld team has grown to over 100 people. With the Series A financing, the application development and sales team will be further expanded in the coming months, so that the company can increasingly pursue potential in industrial applications in addition to the automotive market. the startup use the financial injection to qualify the core components of its LiDAR sensor for the automotive market and to further expand production.
"The safety of autonomous vehicles is based on LiDAR sensors. We see ourselves as uniquely positioned here, as our technology stands out through its mass market capability and industrializability,"
so Blickfeld co-founder Florian Petit.
"But the mobility sector is not the only application for our LiDAR sensors and recognition software: Numerous other successful customer projects in logistics, smart cities, and security confirm our approach, as does the financial commitment of Continental's venture capital unit, Bayern Kapital, and our existing investors. We are now pleased to take the next steps toward series production."
Praise for the technological maturity of Blickfeld
Nils Berkemeyer, Venture Capital Manager at Continental, explains:
"With a cross-sector value proposition, such as reliability, performance, and scalability, Blickfeld addresses several growth markets in addition to the automotive sector. Particularly impressive is the advanced technology maturity that the team has achieved in a very short time. With the support of strong venture capital investors and industry experts, Blickfeld is now ideally positioned to establish itself as a key provider of optical sensing technology worldwide."
With its seed financing, Blickfeld was able to 3.6 million euros from Fluxunit – Osram Ventures, High-Tech Gründerfonds, Tengelmann Ventures, and Unternehmertum Venture Capital Partners. In 2018, the seed financing was raised to 10 million US dollars The amount of the current Series A financing was not disclosed.
