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