Mycroft AI

Voice-Assisted Technology

Company Information

Website:

https://mycroft.ai/

Sector:

Computer & Software

Location:

Kansas City, MO

Mycroft AI has developed an "open source" solution for voice-assisted technology.

Voice-assisted technology is quickly becoming mainstream. That’s because the technology is simple, intuitive, and powerful.

According to a January 2018 article from ZD Net, a technology-focused website, voice-assisted devices such as smart speakers are now the fastest-growing consumer technology.

In 2018, more than 56 million smart speakers are expected to be sold to consumers.

And according to Statista, the virtual assistant market will surpass $5 billion in 2018, and reach $15 billion by 2021.

As a result, companies are eager to incorporate voice into their business, but many are leery of using the proprietary solutions offered by “big tech” companies such as Google, Amazon, and Apple.

You see, businesses and consumers are becoming increasingly hesitant about sharing data with these tech giants — especially after the Facebook / Cambridge Analytica data "scandal."

That’s why Mycroft has built an alternative to voice technologies like Alexa, Siri, and Assistant...

Specifically, it's built an "open source" solution.

Keep in mind: many open source companies have become incredibly successful. For example:

Red Hat (NYSE: RHT), a software company providing open source software products, is worth more than $23 billion…

WordPress, an open source content platform for websites and blogs, is valued at $1.1 billion…

And MySQL, an open source data management system, was acquired by Sun Microsystems for $1 billion.

Mycroft, meanwhile, aims to be the next success story with its open-source voice assistant.

To be clear, Mycroft is not a device-making company. Rather, it is a software platform.

According to the company, Mycroft’s voice assistant “runs anywhere and interacts exactly like a person.”

Its technology includes multiple machine-learning algorithms, including “Speech to Text,” “Natural Language Understanding,” and “Dialog Engine.”

In September 2015, Mycroft debuted a wireless speaker with voice technology called the Mark I. Through Kickstarter, a crowdfunding platform, the company sold more than 2,000 devices.

In January 2016, Mycroft was accepted into Techstars, a leading start-up accelerator program that’s guided companies including Uber, Twilio, and ClassPass to success.

One year later, the company received additional funding from Jaguar/Land Rover, the auto company.

In May 2017, Mycroft completed the prestigious 500 Startups accelerator program, joining companies including Credit Karma (valued at $4 billion), Makerbot (acquired for $403 million by Stratasys), and Wildfire (acquired for $350 million by Google).

In January 2018, Mycroft raised more than $2 million from a number of top venture capital firms, including Deep Space Ventures, Social Starts, and TechNexus Venture Collaborative.

Most recently, the company launched a Kickstarter campaign for its Mark II device, and has received more than $450,000 in pre-order sales.

The Mark II devices will be delivered to customers in December 2018, around the same time the company will start developing its Mark III speaker.

In February 2019, Mycroft aims to release the first version of its enterprise voice assistant technology. This is when the company expects to start generating significant revenue.

Mycroft will charge businesses a $1,500 monthly fee for licensing its technology, and individuals consumers will pay a $2 monthly membership fee.

Team Background

Steve Penrod - Chief Technology Officer

Steve formerly founded Penrod Development Group. This technology company focused on creating a virtual assistant named “Christopher,” which featured voice command and Internet connectivity.

He formerly served as Vice President of Engineering for Rhythm Engineering, a company that grew to $15 million in annual revenues.

In addition, he served as Associate Director of Software Development for Gene Network Sciences, a biotech company.

Steve spent more than seven years as a senior programmer for Autodesk, a software company that focused on mobile devices.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from The University of Kansas.

Joshua Montgomery - Director & CEO

Joshua brings more than 15 years of entrepreneurial experience to Mycroft.

Most recently, he served as a mentor for the Techstars accelerator program.

For nearly 10 years, he served as a Captain in the Kansas Air National Guard, where he served in multiple leadership roles.

Joshua formerly served as President of Wicked Broadband, an Internet Service Provider he built from the ground up. As a result of his efforts, Wicked Broadband served more than 5,000 customers and was featured in Forbes and Wired.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from The University of Kansas and completed additional education while with the National Guard.

Derick Schweppe - Chief Design Officer

Prior to working at Mycroft, Derick ran his own design company, Schweppe Design, for six years.

During that time, he also worked as a guest lecturer at The University of Kansas.

He previously served as an industrial designer for Marche Design, a design company focused on various consumer products.

Derick earned a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from The University of Kansas.

Nate Tomasi - COO

Nate has experience leading start-ups.

Before joining Mycroft, he served as Director of Operations for Captify Health, a technology company focused on improving the healthcare industry for physicians. In June 2017, Captify was acquired by Continuum Health.

He previously served as Vice President of Operations for Rhythm Engineering, where he worked alongside Steve Penrod.

In addition, he served as an account manager for Apex Systems, an IT company.

Nate earned a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing and an MBA from the University of Missouri.

Kristie Adair - CFO & Director of Marketing

Before serving as Mycroft’s Director of Marketing, Kristie served as Owner/Operator of Wicked Broadband, the Internet Service Provider built by Joshua.

In addition, she formerly served as Executive Director of the Lawrence Center for Entrepreneurship.

Kristie earned a Bachelor’s degree in History from Washburn University.

Co-Investors

500 Startups

Prominent seed fund and accelerator program founded by PayPal and Google alumni. Investments include AngelList, Unbounce, and Behance.

TechStars

Prominent accelerator for tech companies. Investments include Uber, ClassPass and Twilio.

Deep Space Ventures

Venture capital firm specializing in investing in technology- and e-sports-related start-ups. Portfolio includes Legalinc (technology company automating business services for attorneys that was acquired) and Meta SaaS (software company that was acquired by Flexera in May 2018).

KIKA Capital Management

Japanese venture capital firm. Portfolio includes Acre (company creating zero-energy smarthomes) and Style (a fashion rental marketplace touting itself as the “Airbnb of Fashion.”)

Social Starts

Early-Stage Venture Fund. Portfolio includes Adaptly, Boxed, and Zemanta.

T2M Capital

An investment company focused on growing the early-stage technology market in Latin America. Portfolio includes start-ups in the financial technology and big data industries.

TechNexus

Incubator for early-stage technology companies. Guided companies including Synap Software Labs (customer communication platform) and Context Media (helps content companies manage their assets) achieve successful exits.

Raising
$1.07 million
Committed
$1.069 million (100%)
Current Valuation
$19.9 million
Min. Investment
$251
Deal Type
Title III
(For all investors)
Offering Type
Equity
Finance History
  • $350K
    2016-02-26
    Techstars
  • $150K
    2017-02-08
    500 Startups
  • $110K
    2017-02-17
    Jaguar/Land Rover
  • $2 million
    2018-01-12
    Unknown
Notable Investors
  • 500 Startups
  • TechStars
  • Deep Space Ventures
  • Social Starts
  • TechNexus
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