Swift Navigation said its technology can be used in a range of robotics, including autonomous lawnmowers, agricultural robots, delivery robots, drones, and more. | Source: Swift Navigation
Swift Navigation, a developer of centimeter-level positioning technology for vehicle autonomy, robotics, and precision logistics, this week said it has raised $50 million in a Series E financing round. This round brings the company’s total funding to date to $250 million.
“We’re thrilled to have the support of such a strong group of investors who recognize the transformative power of precise positioning,” stated Timothy Harris, co-founder and CEO of Swift Navigation. “This funding enables us to accelerate growth, expand partnerships, and continue to innovate to unlock some of the most important technologies of our time.”
Traditional global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), such as GPS, provide positioning with an accuracy range of 3 to 10 m (9.8 to 32.8 ft.). Swift said its Skylark Precise Positioning Service is a cloud-based service that corrects errors in GNSS signals.
The company claimed that this enables it to provide positioning accuracy to the centimeter level. Skylark is purpose-built to enable mass-market adoption of high-accuracy GNSS by unlocking high-volume applications in autonomous driving, robotics, precision logistics, and V2X (vehicle-to-everything) communication.
How Skylark stands apart from traditional GNSS
Swift Navigation said its latest financing reflects strong market demand for the company’s innovative approach to precise positioning. Unlike traditional positioning technologies, Skylark uses advanced atmospheric modeling, cloud-based architecture, carrier-grade networks, and ecosystem-driven design to deliver reliability, safety, and cost efficiency at scale.
Skylark is a real-time, cloud-based service, certified to meet ISO 26262:2018 functional safety standards for road vehicles. Unlike other ASIL-certified positioning solutions, which rely on costly physical data centers, Skylark operates entirely in the cloud.
Today, the company said Skylark powers more than 10 million ADAS (advanced driver-assist system)-enabled and autonomous vehicles worldwide and supports global programs for over 20 automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, top robotics companies, and one of the world’s largest commercial fleet operators.
Swift Navigation to drive adoption beyond ADAS
Crosslink Capital led Swift Navigation’s Series E round, which included participation from existing investors NEA, Eclipse Ventures, EPIQ Capital Group, First Round Capital, TELUS Global Ventures, and Potentum Partners. It also included new investors Niterra Ventures, AlTi Tiedemann Global, GRIDS Capital, Essentia Ventures, Shea Ventures, and EnerTech Capital.
With this Series E funding, Swift said it will drive further adoption in and beyond ADAS, autonomy, robotics, and precision logistics. The company’s technology has applications in low-cost, high-accuracy digital mapping, precision mobile navigation, and V2X communication.
“Swift Navigation has built a game-changing precise positioning solution, enabling autonomy and automation at scale,” said Michael Stark, founder and managing director of Crosslink Capital. “Their ability to deliver reliable, safety-certified, cloud-based positioning at a fraction of the cost of legacy solutions is unlocking new commercial opportunities across multiple industries. We are proud to partner with Swift as they expand their reach and impact globally.”
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