KASSEL: SWARM Biotactics, a developer of insect-based bio-robotic systems, has raised €10 million ($10.7 million) in seed funding to scale its intelligent swarm technology for use in defense, security and emergency response missions.
The latest round brings the German startup’s total funding to €13 million, including a €3 million pre-seed investment.
The round was led by a consortium of international investors including Vertex Ventures US, Possible Ventures and Capnamic, the latter of which also participated in the company’s pre-seed round. Several early investors increased their stakes in the oversubscribed round.
Founded in 2024, SWARM Biotactics is building AI-enabled, biologically integrated robotic swarms composed of cockroaches equipped with proprietary sensor backpacks and secure communication tools. Designed to operate in high-risk and inaccessible environments—such as collapsed buildings, denied zones or disaster areas—the bio-robots can navigate cluttered terrain and deliver real-time data where drones or conventional ground robots fall short.
“This funding moves us from deep tech to deployment—delivering the infrastructure democracies need to operate more smartly, more safely, and with total tactical awareness,” said Stefan Wilhelm, CEO of SWARM Biotactics.
The company plans to use the capital to launch operational pilots in Europe and North America, ramp up production of its sensor hardware and neural interfaces, and expand its research and go-to-market teams. Recruitment efforts will target experts in insect neurobiology, embedded AI and dual-use systems integration.
“Our mission is to build a scalable, dual-use intelligence platform that adapts to any terrain, threat or mission,” said co-founder and CTO Moritz Strube.
SWARM is headquartered in Kassel, Germany, with a U.S. subsidiary based in San Francisco.