Savioke, as startup built by former Willow Garage robotics lab chief Steve Cousins, has raised $2 million in its seed round led by Morado Venture Partners. The startup wants to bring autonomous robots to the service industry, according to GigaOM.
AME Cloud Ventures, Google Ventures, and high net worth individuals also participated in the funding, the report added.
Cousins said: "We think there is a huge [opportunity] in the service industry: places where people live, sleep, work eat, but they are not homes. It will signal a very important step in moving robots out of the lab and out of the factory and really starting to see them among us."
Savioke has not yet revealed fine details about the service robot. However, Cousins disclosed that the company already has a highly functional prototype which is easier to use and is more affordable compared to other robots built by Willow Garage, the report detailed.
According to Cousins, hospitals, hospice centers, and offices are the places that could use the robot in the near future. Savioke is eyeing customer trials within the year. In addition, Cousins expects these robots to be more visible in the service industry in the next few years, GigaOM reported.
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