- Hanaco VC, General Motors, CarMax, W.R. Berkley Corporation and F.I.T. Ventures L.P. among UVeye’s Series D funding-round investors
- Funding to support further growth in sales and launch new manufacturing operations in North America
DETROIT, May 9, 2023 — UVeye, a pioneer in the development of automated vehicle-inspection systems for the auto industry, has secured $100 million in additional funding to support major new sales and manufacturing initiatives in North America.
The company’s recently completed Series D investment round was led by Hanaco VC, a venture-capital firm based in New York and Tel Aviv with $1.5 billion in assets under management, including investments in companies such as Digital Ocean, Yotpo and Divvy. The firm’s mobility focus includes investments in Moovit and Via Transportation.
Existing investors who also participated in the Series D round included GM Ventures, CarMax, W.R. Berkley Corporation, F.I.T. Ventures L.P. and Israeli institutional investors.
Series D funding will be used to start production of UVeye inspection systems in North America, support further sales growth in the U.S. and fuel new-market expansion efforts.
“UVeye’s goal is to both revolutionize and standardize how the auto industry detects vehicle damage and mechanical issues,” said Amir Hever, the company’s CEO and co-founder. “Our patent-protected technology provides automakers, dealers and fleet operators with unmatched solutions for quickly and accurately identifying vehicle problems while setting new quality standards for the industry.”
He added that “The confidence that Hanaco VC and our other strategic investors have shown in UVeye will allow us to further scale our operations and introduce industry-first inspection technology at thousands of dealerships, used-car auctions and fleets throughout the United States within the next three years.”
UVeye currently has facilities in North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region, including offices in Israel, Japan, Germany and the United States. Since its founding in 2016, the company has raised $200 million in investment capital and formed strategic partnerships with numerous automakers, dealership groups and used-car auctions.
Lior Prosor, partner at Hanaco VC, noted “Automated inspection of vehicles enabled by advanced computer vision and AI is in its first innings, but will completely transform the auto industry.
“As electric and autonomous vehicles become more and more complex and fleets become more difficult to manage, low-cost and high-frequency predictive maintenance will become an essential part of any auto stack. We have spent the last 24 months looking for the right player to back in this market and believe UVeye is best positioned to become the long-term category leader in the space.”
Headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey and in Tel Aviv, Israel, UVeye offers industry-first vehicle-inspection systems based on advanced artificial intelligence, computer-vision and machine-learning technologies for both the automotive and homeland security industries.
During 2022 and early 2023 UVeye announced major programs in the United States involving more than 5,000 dealerships, used-car auctions and fleets including commercial agreements with General Motors, Volvo Cars USA and CarMax to introduce UVeye technology throughout their wholesale networks.
“Our agreements with leading players in the U.S. market will lead to the installation of thousands of new UVeye inspection systems within the next two-to-three years and generate an exponential jump in sales,” Hever said.
The company currently produces three high-speed vehicle-inspection systems suited for use at new- and used-car dealerships, used-car auctions and major fleets. The rapid drive-through systems include:
- Helios – An underbody scanner that detects a wide variety of problems including frame damage, missing parts and fluid leaks, as well as brake- and exhaust-system issues.
- Artemis – A system that checks tire quality. Within seconds it identifies tire brand, technical specifications, air pressure, tread depth, sidewall damage, whether or not a vehicle’s tires are mismatched and alignment issues.
- Atlas – A 360-degree vehicle-exterior detection system that checks sheet metal and other external body components such as bumpers, door locks, grilles and windows.
About UVeye
UVeye has created the world’s first fully-automated suite of vehicle-inspection systems.
Utilizing a unique combination of proprietary algorithms, cloud architecture, artificial intelligence, machine learning and sensor-fusion technologies, the company’s groundbreaking drive-thru systems can detect external or mechanical flaws and identify anomalies, modifications or foreign objects under and around any side of a vehicle within seconds.
UVeye technology can detect a virtually limitless list of vehicle problems, including oil leaks, exterior damage such as scratches and dents, tire sidewall and tread issues and numerous forms of underbody damage.
Originally developed for use in the homeland security industry, UVeye expanded its technology applications to the auto industry, revolutionizing multipoint inspection processes and improving the customer experience by scanning for and identifying a wide variety of quality and repair concerns. Additional information is available at www.uveye.com.
SOURCE UVeye
