Victoria-based software startup Niricson has secured over $10 million CAD in Series A financing to assess the condition of aging infrastructure with predictive analytics.
Niricson sells damage-assessment software and data collection tech designed to help monitor important, large-scale civil assets like bridges, spillways, nuclear power plants, and tunnels.
Niricson claims to serve some of the world’s largest infrastructure owners and engineering consulting firms.
According to Niricson, conventional infrastructure inspections can be labour-intensive, time-consuming, and subjective. Leveraging artificial intelligence (AI), drones, computer vision, and acoustic technology, Niricson’s software aims to paint a more objective and cost-effective picture for infrastructure asset managers and civil engineers, helping them assess damage, plan maintenance, and ensure safety.
With this round, Niricson co-founder and CEO Harsh Rathod told BetaKit that the focus is on product and sales growth. The startup intends to use its latest funding to expand its global footprint and accelerate the development of its AI-driven predictive analytics software.
Niricson’s Series A round closed earlier this month and was led by MUUS Climate Partners. It saw participation from Bentley Systems, Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), Export Development Canada (EDC), Invest Victoria, Australia’s Victorian State Government, Forward Venture Capital, Techstars, and other undisclosed investors.
The equity round, which included an undisclosed amount of grant funding, brings the company’s total financing to about $15 million.
In 2016, Rathod was studying for a PhD in civil engineering at the University of Victoria when a bridge in India that some of his family members often used collapsed, killing nearly 30 people. From that point on, he decided to focus his doctoral work on using robotics and computer vision to assess the condition of bridges and other critical infrastructure assets.
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Four years, later, Rathod teamed up with CTO Aki Tomita to launch Niricson and turn his graduate research into a business.
Today, Niricson claims to serve some of the world’s largest infrastructure owners and engineering consulting firms. The company’s solutions have been tested on key Canadian infrastructure, from runways at Toronto’s Pearson Airport to Southern Saskatchewan’s Gardiner Dam.
To date, Niricson has focused primarily on dams and bridges, but the CEO noted that the startup has been starting to see more demand for its tech in the airfield market.
The company, which has 25 customers across Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, intends to use this capital to build its presence in these four countries and begin expanding into the United Kingdom.
Niricson plans to add another 10 employees to its now 47-person team with hires in tech, customer service, and sales roles.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Dan Meyers.
