Navenio, an Oxford-based health and location tech scaleup, has announced that it has bagged $12.6 million funding before the end of 2021. The round was led by Oxford Science Enterprises alongside existing investors including QBN Capital, Big Pi Ventures, Future Planet Capital, G.K Goh, Hostplus, Oxford Investment Consultants, IP Group, and the University of Oxford.
This round is followed by the $11 million Series A investment it secured last year to improve workforce efficiency in healthcare and other verticals. Navenio will use the fresh investment to help revolutionise workforce efficiency and rapidly accelerate growth in the US market.
Spin-out from University of Oxford
Navenio was spun out of the University of Oxford in 2015 by Professor Niki Trigoni who serves as its founder and CTO. It has a team of over 60 people, which continues to grow. It has got a recommendation in KPMG’s British Tech Pioneers 2020 Programme and has been a part of the DIT100 and Tech Nation’s Upscale 6.0 this year. Also, the company has won both commercial and academic awards.
AI-led indoor location tech
Navenio’s AI-led indoor location technology is the ‘Google Maps for indoors’, which helps hospitals and healthcare units in location tech. It uses only a smartphone’s sensors and some unique technologies to create a highly scalable indoor location. Eventually, it provides actionable insight immediately. Privacy and security are inherent and the company is Cyber Essentials Plus certified, GDPR, HIPAA and NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit compliant.
This solution helps transform and improve workforce efficiency in hospitals. Also, its finds use in applications and systems in any type of building and sector.
Unlike other indoor location solutions, Navenio is infrastructure-free. It can be implemented without surveying. Also, it is touted to deliver highly accurate, frictionless and scalable indoor location. What’s interesting is that it works even in places where GPS does not work, thanks to the sensors in smartphones. Notably, Navenio has had a dramatic effect on improving the efficiency in UK hospitals and helping them provide better care and improved patient outcomes.
Some of its rivals include WIGeoGIS, Compusult, and Tolemi among others.
Tackles rising cost of healthcare
Navenio tackles the ever-rising cost of healthcare with the use of tools that make sure to increase workplace productivity by up to 100%. These tools also free up clinical resources to better focus on patient care. Navenio intends to get this breakthrough technology into the hands of more frontline teams so that they can cope up with demand by maximising patient flow in key departments such as imaging and logistics. This has been a key issue, which limits the ability of hospitals to continue critical operations and procedures as the pandemic continues to impact healthcare.
Stellar partnerships
Already, Navenio established strong relationships with health systems and facilities management operators in the UK and US. With the recent funding from NHSX, as part of an AI in Health and Care Award, the company is developing a proven and nationally scalable evidence base to support improved patient flow across the health economy. It has teamed up with HERE Technologies for its ground-breaking indoor location and have it deployed in many more verticals and make indoor location accessible to everyone.
Niki Trigoni, Founder and CTO of Navenio, said: “I’m delighted our investors have again demonstrated their belief in the vast potential that Navenio can bring by ensuring ‘right person, right place, right time’. Artificial intelligence is one of many technologies making a real-world impact in the health sector, and this investment enables the company to rapidly spearhead international digital transformation.”
Matt Arnold, Principal at Oxford Science Enterprises commented: “We’ve supported Navenio since day one and couldn’t be happier with the progress they have made despite the pandemic. We are proud of the impact this business has made in healthcare and this investment gives the company the firepower to deliver this promise internationally.”
