Spotta’s pest-detecting technology expands into new markets following a year of surging demand

Cambridge, UK, 15th December 2023: Spotta, the smart pest detection tech company, has raised a £3 million growth investment round led by The Yield Lab, STIHL Ventures, and ACF Investors. The latest investment will be used to drive the global growth of Spotta’s products, in particular the breakout success of the Bed Pod detectors for bed bugs. 

Founded in 2018, Spotta’s ultra-low-power insect monitoring sensors track pests continuously so customers can detect infestations early. The sensors detect insects in real time using machine learning/AI and can be installed wherever insect pests might be discovered– from hotel rooms to forests. 

Insect pests cost the economy approximately $570 billion a year by spreading diseases, killing crops and damaging businesses’ reputations around the world. Early detection allows organisations to take action to eradicate the problem before it becomes uncontrollable.  

Spotta’s platform technology shows exactly when, where and what types of insects are active.  This allows the right intervention, in the right place and at the right time, massively reducing the damage pests can do. Its Bed Pods fit seamlessly under mattresses in hotel rooms and provide real-time data via automated alerts which inform the hotels of the location of the pests, complete with the room number, time data and photo tracking. 

In addition to expansion in hospitality, Spotta will use the funding to continue its international expansion in agriculture, forestry and horticulture. It is estimated that 40% of global crop production is lost to pests and diseases. Spotta’s technology allows farmers to detect and prevent the outbreak of insects before they kill crops. It also reduces the need for pesticides, helping to improve productivity and reduce the environmental impact of crop farming.

The investment comes after a period of unprecedented growth for Spotta this summer. Covid hit the hospitality industry very hard indeed but its recovery over the past two years together with bed bug population growth has led to a record year for Spotta with over 3 million room nights now protected. 

Early investors Martlet, Wren Capital, Remus Capital, and business angels from Cambridge Angels and Cambridge Capital Group have also continued to invest in this round and Growthworks has joined as a new investor. 

Robert Fryers, CEO and co-founder of Spotta: 

“The approach to insect detection has remained unchanged for decades. Infestations are found too late, after the damage is done.  Spotta changes this. The timing of our investment round coincided with the recent Paris bed bug infestation, which only reinforced the need for safe, effective and cost-efficient preventative measures like Spotta. This capital injection will be used to fuel our growth across the globe and to continue our expansion into new and exciting markets.” 

Tim Mills, Managing Partner, ACF Investors:

“The Spotta platform built by Robert, Neil and the team delivers a real solution which can completely turn the insect pest control industry on its head. With their smart 24/7 monitoring enabling customers to precision target treatment for the first time. It’s a solution that protects people and crops but also hugely reduces the cost and environmental impact of treatment.” 

ENDS

About Spotta

Spotta leads the way in pest management tech. Its vision is to revolutionise how the world addresses insect pests, moving away from using 40M tonnes of chemical pesticides. Founded on expertise in advanced sensing technologies, Spotta’s revolutionary monitoring systems utilise exclusive IoT hardware and smart algorithms, prioritising detection and prevention. Dedicated to innovation, we deploy our cutting-edge tech globally and are trusted by multiple European governments, operating in over ten countries within forestry, agriculture, and commercial buildings. Spotta is globally recognized as a unique cost-effective, automated, and real-time monitoring platform designed for specific insects, reshaping the approach to pest management worldwide.

About ACF Investors www.acfinvestors.com

Launched in 2011, ACF Investors (formerly the Angel CoFund) is a privately managed and commercially focused venture capital fund that works alongside sector smart business angels to invest in high-potential SMEs across the UK, directly providing funding to support exceptional businesses.

To date, ACF Investors has supported 116 companies, including such names as Ebury, Gousto, Creo Medical, and Form3, providing more than £75 million in direct investment alongside more than £450 million from business angels and other investors, making it one of the most active early-stage investors in the country.  

About STIHL Ventures https://stihlventures.com/

STIHL Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of the STIHL Group and focuses on investments in and collaborations with startups. The STIHL Group develops, manufactures and distributes power tools for professional forestry and agriculture as well as for garden and landscape maintenance, the construction sector and private garden owners. The product range is complemented by digital solutions and services. Products are distributed through authorized dealers and STIHL’s own online-shops, including 42 sales and marketing subsidiaries, about 120 importers and more than 55,000 servicing dealers in over 160 countries. STIHL produces in own plants in seven countries: Germany, USA, Brazil, Switzerland, Austria, China and in the Philippines. Since 1971 STIHL has been the world’s top-selling chain saw brand. The company was founded in 1926 and is based in Waiblingen near Stuttgart. In 2022, STIHL achieved a worldwide sales volume of 5.49 billion euros with a workforce of 20,552. See more on www.stihl.com

About The Yield Lab Europe www.theyieldlab.eu

The Yield Lab Europe is the leading Agtech impact venture capital fund, investing into early stage European AgriFoodTech companies to make the global food and agriculture production systems more sustainable and more efficient whilst improving profitability.  Its portfolio includes technologies in crop production, animal health and welfare, precision agriculture, supply chain/logistics, food ingredients, supply chain, food processing and packaging. The Yield Lab Europe is part of the global Yield Lab network that forms the largest early stage AgriFoodTech investor base.