The recruitment will support the company's growth in light of the growing demand for ElliQ - the home robot that helps relieve loneliness for the third and fourth year olds, and will help with accelerated investment in conversation capabilities that include integration with Generative AI
Intuition Robotics today announced the completion of the first phase of a $25 million C funding round, led by Woven Capital, Toyota's Growth Fund, and with the participation of Toyota Ventures, OurCrowd,
Western Technology Investment and other investors. So far the company has raised 58 million dollars and the current fundraising raises the total amount raised to 83 million dollars. The current recruitment will help the company deal with the growing demand for ElliQ, the social robot based on artificial intelligence that it developed for the third generation, on behalf of government organizations in the United States and health organizations.
The business model of Intuition Robotics is based on enterprises, but the robot is available for sale to anyone in the US through the website ElliQ. The price of the robot consists of a one-time payment of $250 and another $30-40 every month, depending on the program. The company plans to sell in other markets in the world in the future, primarily Japan.
According to studies, loneliness is an epidemic that can cause serious damage to human health. The head of the US public health services recently published that experiencing loneliness can cause an increase in the risk of death, the same as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. The healthcare system in the United States is looking for solutions to the growing problem of loneliness, and in recent months new legislation has been proposed to formulate a policy to promote social connection and deal with the increase in the rate of loneliness in the population.
Intuition Robotics broke ground with ElliQ, a social robot based on artificial intelligence that is designed to improve the lives of the third generation by reducing loneliness and encouraging independent, active and healthy lives. ElliQ has consistently and over time proven its ability to generate engagement among users and improve their lives through its proactive suggestions for activities and advanced conversational capabilities. ElliQ is a company and support for adults with the help of daily check-ins, motivation for cognitive and physical activities, connection to family and friends, and more, through a simple and intuitive interface.
"Intuition Robotics advances the future of mobility for aging populations by providing human connection and access to products and services that are not easily accessible," says Nicole LeBlanc, partner atWoven Capital who also joined the company's board of directors. "The company is breaking ground and provides a unique solution that has been validated, provides significant results, and all - while maintaining a strong social framework. All of these are exactly the values behind the future of mobility that Toyota is realizing, and thus Intuition Robotics is a natural fit for Woven Capital."
The current round of funding comes after a successful commercial launch with government organizations across the United States who buy the product for the customers they serve, including New York State, Broward County in Florida, and other counties in Washington and California. In New York State, the product demonstrated unprecedented levels of engagement with an average of over 30 interactions per day with ElliQ, and was found to significantly reduce loneliness for 95% of users.
Recent advances in Generative AI and Large Language Models (LLM) have allowed Intuition Robotics to enhance the conversational experience with ElliQ. By using these technologies, ElliQ has deepened its conversational capabilities, allowing the development of an even deeper relationship to develop between ElliQ and the user. The company has developed technology that selects the areas in which LLM will be added to experiences, such as drawing with ElliQ through the use of DALLE2, the expansion of scripted conversations, and a deeper understanding of the context, while algorithmically controlling the depth of the experience.
"We've seen the direct impact that loneliness has on our older community, but we've also seen the positive results that technology and artificial intelligence have on the older population. Beyond the innovative results in reducing loneliness - ElliQ also directly affects health, well-being and behavior change," he said Dor Schooler, the CEO and founder of Intuishin Robotics. "The latest advances in AI have upgraded ElliQ's conversational capabilities and allow it to be even more contextual and personalized to the user. We are proud to be at the forefront of using this technology to help an entire population facing the difficult and painful problem of loneliness. We are excited to use the additional funding to distribute more ElliQ units globally, increase product availability, expand partnerships and gain a deeper understanding of the role that ElliQ can play in the US healthcare system. We are grateful for the support of Woven Capital and our other investors in realizing our vision to help seniors live healthy and independent lives at home."
"Since we first invested in Intuishin Robotics in 2017, the company's team has been an inspiration for us to empower adults through artificial intelligence. It is exciting to see the progress they have made over the years - from the development and initial tests of ElliQ through the commercial distribution to the growing number of customers," he said Jim Adler, founder and general partner of Toyota Ventures. We share the company's vision of using technology to enhance the human experience, and we look forward to seeing how ElliQ will continue to impact the lives of older users."
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