9 hours ago
Exclusive: Logistics safety startup Voxel raises $44M Series B
Logistics safety startup Voxel closed a $44 million Series B led by NewRoad Capital Partners, CEO Vernon O'Donnell tells Axios Pro exclusively.
Why it matters: It gives San Franscisco-based Voxel three years of runway to reach breakeven or accelerate growth and raise again, its CEO says.
How it works: The software integrates into existing security cameras, using AI to identify in real time — and increasingly predict — workplace hazards.
Such scenarios include shelf integrity, forklift operation, employee movements or aisle spills that could present safety concerns.
While worker safety is the core business case, the software's capabilities extend to productivity and efficiency, O'Donnell says.
State of play: Nearly 3 million people die in workplace incidents each year globally, according to the International Labour Organization.
Worker compensation, increased insurance premiums and a toll on morale stem from such incidents, hitting companies' annual bottom lines.
Zoom in: Voxel counts 14 Fortune 500 customers, six of which have signed contracts in the last 120 days, the CEO says.
One Fortune 50 customer changed the entire loading and unloading process for a more than 1 million-square-foot distribution center based on Voxel's recommendations, he says.
Adopters across various sectors include Albertsons, Dick's Sporting Goods, Americold, AGI, the Port of Virginia and Berry Global.
What they're saying: "We're seeing ... a hard ROI: reduction in worker's comp claims, reduction in OSHA fines, reduction in lost days," O'Donnell says.
"Their speed of using AI to then be able to classify, 'is this an unsafe act or not?' and then alert leadership to take action — that's what really sold us," said Chris Sultemeier, NewRoad Capital Partners operating partner and former Walmart EVP of logistics.
Friction point: Union workers have sometimes objected to video monitoring they consider invasive.
