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Gecko Robotics Raises $7M Series A for Inspection Robots

Source: wsj.com

TL;DR

Pittsburgh startup Gecko Robotics raised $7 million in Series A funding led by Founders Fund.
Investors include Mark Cuban, The Westly Group, Justin Kan, and Y Combinator.
Funds support wall-climbing robots that inspect industrial equipment to prevent hazards and save lives.

The story at a glance

Gecko Robotics, a Pittsburgh company building wall-climbing inspection robots for power plants and industrial sites, raised $7 million in Series A funding on August 20, 2018.[[1]](https://www.wsj.com/articles/gecko-robotics-collects-7-million-series-a-1534804196?msockid=34265b9011fe613d30a74f46100e606e)[[2]](https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/20/safety-and-inspection-bot-startup-gecko-robotics-adds-7-million-to-the-coffers) Founders Fund led the round, with Mark Cuban, The Westly Group, Justin Kan, and Y Combinator taking part.[[3]](https://www.wsj.com/articles/gecko-robotics-collects-7-million-series-a-1534804196)[[4]](https://www.therobotreport.com/gecko-robotics-secures-7m) The news came as the firm, part of Y Combinator's 2016 cohort, works to scale after a small seed round.

Key points

Company develops robots that climb tanks, boilers, pipes, and scrubbers using magnetic adhesion, ultrasonics, lasers, and sensors to check wall thickness, cracking, pitting, and degradation.[[2]](https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/20/safety-and-inspection-bot-startup-gecko-robotics-adds-7-million-to-the-coffers)[[4]](https://www.therobotreport.com/gecko-robotics-secures-7m)
Robots collect 100x more data and inspect 10x faster than prior methods, reducing shutdown time and accident risk.[[4]](https://www.therobotreport.com/gecko-robotics-secures-7m)
Each robot costs $50,000 to $100,000, a small price compared to human safety in hot, dangerous inspection work.[[2]](https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/20/safety-and-inspection-bot-startup-gecko-robotics-adds-7-million-to-the-coffers)
Co-founder Jake Loosararian says power plant inspection deaths number 20-30 yearly, though data is poorly tracked.[[4]](https://www.therobotreport.com/gecko-robotics-secures-7m)
Prior funding: $120,000 seed in March 2016; was nearing profitability while serving U.S. power plants by then.[[4]](https://www.therobotreport.com/gecko-robotics-secures-7m)[[5]](https://www.finsmes.com/2018/08/gecko-robotics-secures-7m-in-funding.html)

Details and context

Gecko's robots go where humans risk death from heat, confined spaces, or equipment failure during non-destructive testing.[[2]](https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/20/safety-and-inspection-bot-startup-gecko-robotics-adds-7-million-to-the-coffers)[[4]](https://www.therobotreport.com/gecko-robotics-secures-7m) The firm started with boiler-scanning bots using ultrasound and cameras, then expanded to varied payloads for multiple industries.

Machine learning helps make inspections quicker and more precise than traditional tools.[[2]](https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/20/safety-and-inspection-bot-startup-gecko-robotics-adds-7-million-to-the-coffers) Funds will expand operations and reach, building on early clients in power generation.

Key quotes

“There has been virtually no innovation in industrial services technology for decades. Gecko’s robots massively reduce facility shutdown time while gathering critical performance data and preventing potentially fatal accidents. The demand for what they are building is huge.” — Trae Stephens, Founders Fund partner.[[2]](https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/20/safety-and-inspection-bot-startup-gecko-robotics-adds-7-million-to-the-coffers)

Why it matters

Industrial inspections often lead to injuries or deaths, and Gecko's robots offer a safer, data-rich alternative for critical infrastructure like power plants. Owners and operators gain faster checks that cut downtime and costs, while investors bet on growth in a stagnant field. Watch for product rollouts and client wins, though scaling hardware remains a challenge for early-stage robotics firms.