Robotic Pet Company Tombot Secures $6.1M Series A Funding

LOS ANGELES—Tombot, a robotics company, announced the close—and oversubscription—of its $6.1 million Series A funding round.

Tombot’s flagship product, Jennie the robotic puppy, was designed specifically to treat the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) and other health issues.

“Tombot is entering a high-demand, underserved market at the intersection of mental health and assistive technology,” said Tombot CEO and co-founder Tom Stevens. “Over 300 million seniors around the world with dementia and mild cognitive impairment are unable to care for a live animal at a time when they need the companionship of a pet more than ever. Millions of other individuals suffering from mental health adversities are in a similar predicament.”

With artistic design by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, and developed with the guidance of clinical experts, patients and their families, Jennie provides many of the health benefits associated with live animal ownership, such as reduced stress and loneliness. Jennie will be used in private homes, assisted living and memory care communities, and other settings where live animals are not always safe or practical. Covered with sensors to respond to touch, voice commands, movement and other sensory inputs, Jennie is rechargeable, fully cleanable and comes with an optional caregiver app to customize behaviors and ease the burden of caregiving.

With participation from both new and existing investors, the funding round was led by Caduceus Capital Partners, a Nashville-based team of veteran health care investors with a primary emphasis on accelerating growth of early-stage digital health startups.

“We identified the growing need for robotic companions several years ago and believe the market is now on the brink of exponential expansion,” said Dave Vreeland, senior managing partner, Caduceus Capital Partners. “By 2030, the U.S. is projected to have 73 million seniors—an aging population that will increasingly face challenges related to loneliness, companionship and chronic disease management. These issues are rapidly surpassing the capacity of human caregivers alone. Tombot is uniquely positioned to lead this emerging sector and drive widespread adoption of robotic companions.”

“This investment will be rocket fuel for Tombot,” said Stevens. “We are most appreciative of our company’s Board of Directors for their ongoing guidance, and are especially grateful to Caduceus for recognizing and supporting Tombot’s mission of creating robotic animals that transform the daily lives of individuals, families and communities facing health adversities.”

According to Stevens, this investment will be used to expand Tombot’s team, finalize engineering, complete regulatory and safety certifications and prepare its first robotic pet for customer shipments to its more than 16,000 pre-order and waitlist customers.