Autonomous drone inspection solution startup Percepto Ltd. today announced it has raised $67 million in fresh funding led by Koch Disruptive Technologies after receiving a license from the U.S. government to deploy drones remotely nationwide.

The Series C funding round brings the total raised by the company to more than $120 million and includes participation from new and existing investors Zimmer Partners, U.S. Venture Partners, Delek US Holdings, Atento Capital, Spider Capital and Arkin Holdings.

Founded in 2014, with headquarters in Austin, Texas and started in Israel, Percepto makes drone hardware and develops artificial intelligence software that automates on-site inspections for industrial sites. Its drone solution acts to automate the visual inspection workflow of entire facilities by providing quick analysis of leak-detection, overheating, infrastructure deterioration and other problems for potentially hazardous locations.

In one example, one of Percepto’s drones detected a methane gas leak at an oil and gas customer within hours of deployment that could have gone unnoticed for months if searched for using ground-based detection methods. The company argued that its drone-based methods saved the company millions of dollars as opposed to conventional methods while minimizing risks to workers.

The company’s solution is also used by multiple subsidiaries of Koch Industries to inspect properties. Using the technology, the company can be certain to catch problems before minor issues escalate into major incidents.

“Having deployed Percepto’s technology across various Koch companies, we are experiencing first-hand how its innovative R&D improves inspection and monitoring,” said Chase Koch, founder and chief executive of Koch Disruptive Technologies. “Their work to create a clear regulatory path for this technology puts it in a strong market position, firmly stationed at the forefront of the industry.”

This news comes after a month ago, Percepto received a “Beyond Line of Sight” waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration to remotely operate drones at critical infrastructure sites without site-specific approval. With this waiver, the company doesn’t need FAA site-specific approval to operate its drone monitoring solution, which removes logistical and cost barriers for clients such as on-site human supervision and radar.

According to the company, one of the biggest barriers to the adoption and use of drone inspection technology isn’t hardware and software but government regulations limiting the ability to fly drones where they are needed. Getting this approval from the FAA opens up a whole new horizon for the company to operate where it needs to across the United States.

“With this new round of funding, new strategic investors, and the new regulations that significantly increase the access to using autonomous drones, the conditions are ripe for the autonomous drone market to expand,” said Dor Abuhasira, Percepto co-founder and chief executive.

Photo: Percepto