Praemo, a Kitchener-based startup that uses artificial intelligence to identify process problems for enterprise companies, announced a CDN$3.5-million Series A raise Thursday.
The lead investor is McRock Capital, a Canadian VC firm with offices in Toronto and Calgary that focuses on the Internet of Things and “the intersection of sensors and software in large industrial markets.” McRock has previously invested in Kitchener-based IoT firm Miovision, leading a CDN$15-million round in May, 2018.
“Praemo addresses a huge unmet need by providing simple and accurate prescriptions at the right time to operators that are passionate about their facilities,” Michael Martinez, Praemo’s co-founder and CEO, said in a release.
Praemo co-founder and CEO Michael Martinez.
“After interacting with McRock and experiencing their vast corporate relationships, especially during their 2019 McRock Industrial IoT Symposium, we could not be more pleased to welcome them as a strategic partner and investor.”
Praemo has 11 employees. It plans to use the cash injection for product development and expanding its market reach. Its software has been deployed in a wide range of industrial operations, including automotive, industrial equipment manufacturing, injection moulding and food-and-beverage.
The company launched in March, 2017. McRock’s co-founder, Whitney Rockley, will join Praemo’s board as part of the agreement.
“Rarely do we see an analytics company that has deep industry domain expertise combined with a laser focus on a key vertical market that they intimately understand,” said Rockley. “Praemo is throwing out the guardrails in algorithmic thinking and providing a tool that does not have artificial bias embedded in it. This improves accuracy and is able to identify patterns and anomalies that drive quality and throughput in ways we have never seen.”
McRock is backed by institutional investors as well as Cisco Systems, Caterpillar and Électricité de France (EDF).
