Andromeda raises AUD $23m to launch robots for aged care

Andromeda has secured AUD $23 million in Series A funding, achieving a company valuation of AUD $100 million and marking the largest women-led Series A round in Australia this year.

The funding round was led by US-based Forerunner Ventures and included participation from Rethink Impact, Artesian, Main Sequence, Visible Ventures and Trampoline. Previous investors such as Purpose Ventures, which led Andromeda's Seed round, and Startmate also participated.

This Series A round distinguishes itself by its majority women-led investor panel, which includes Eurie Kim, Chairperson at ŌURA and Partner at Forerunner Ventures; Alezeia Brown, Partner at Main Sequence; Heidi Patel, Partner at Rethink Impact; and Ananya Sinha, Principal at Artesian. These leaders have a track record of supporting women-led startups with early portfolio success.

Market expansion plans

Andromeda's Chief Executive Officer, Grace Brown, said the investment will accelerate the company's expansion into the United States, with a focus on the aged care sector, and facilitate scaling of operations and hiring in Australia.

Brown explained, "This funding will see us expand into the US focusing on aged care initially, and in Australia it means we can fast track our waitlist and bring the magic of Abi's companionship to more customers and partners in the aged care sector and other industries."

She added, "We're hiring across every area of our business in Australia from engineering to customer success while in the US, we're particularly looking for creative and animation robotics specialists."

Genesis Abi launch

Coinciding with the funding announcement, Andromeda has launched the next-generation companion robot, Genesis Abi. The redesigned model will have its first deployment this month in a mecwacare aged care facility, offering new features intended to support Australia's workforce needs within aged care settings.

Discussing the updated robot, Brown said, "Genesis Abi is fully autonomous. Care teams can direct Abi and set her daily schedule, and she'll navigate the home independently – supporting staff to lead group activities, spending one-on-one time with residents, conversing in their preferred language, listening to their stories, and bringing that spark of human connection we all crave."

She continued, "We're grateful to all our aged care partners who've co-developed Abi with us to support care teams in providing more companionship to residents, filling a void that simply can't be solved by more staff alone."

Core focus on empathy

Andromeda's focus on emotional intelligence and empathy in robotics stems from Brown's initial inspiration during extended Covid-19 lockdowns in Melbourne when she sought companionship through technology. With co-founder Yan Chen, Brown led Andromeda from research and development through commercialisation and now into an expansion phase.

"We believe the next mass technological adoption will be the home companion robot. With Abi, we're leading that shift – starting in aged care where the need for meaningful connection is greatest," Brown said.

She also stated, "We're at the frontier of emotion, character AI and social systems design, building a new kind of relationship that feels warm, helpful and profoundly human because the world needs more of that."

Andromeda's trajectory centres on addressing loneliness through the use of companion robots capable of building genuine connections with older adults in both Australia and the United States. The company's leadership has emphasised the ongoing collaboration with aged care partners to ensure that Abi's design and deployment effectively augment care teams and address the social needs of residents.