Hula Earth, a Munich-based startup focused on biodiversity monitoring, has secured €1.6 million in pre-seed funding to expand its automated platform. The funding round was led by Point Nine Capital, with support from Climate Founders, Partners in Clime, WithEarth, and a group of notable entrepreneurs including Lawrence Leuschner, Kilian Kaminsky, Florian Hildebrand, and Markus Linder. The European Space Agency (ESA) also officially backs the venture.
Founded to address the critical issue of biodiversity loss—estimated to have decreased wildlife populations by 69% over the last 50 years—Hula Earth provides an innovative solution to help industries monitor their impact on nature. As Florian Geiser, Co-founder and CEO of Hula Earth, explains: “More than half of the global GDP is dependent on nature. Only by monitoring its condition with real data captured onsite and working towards a future-proof state can we ensure access to ecosystem services as well as food and medicine security for future generations.”
Hula Earth’s platform features a two-part system combining proprietary smart sensors, known as BioT devices, with satellite data integration. The BioT sensors automatically capture environmental data and bioacoustic recordings, capable of identifying over 6,000 species. By integrating this ground-level data with satellite imagery, the platform offers comprehensive insights that help companies:
- Track environmental impact across their value chains
- Improve biodiversity management, reducing business risks
- Make informed sustainability decisions based on real-time data
Pawel from Point Nine Capital expressed confidence in the technology, stating: “Biodiversity loss is one of the defining challenges of our generation. We are convinced that technology can help organizations measure and manage their impact on biodiversity, but scalable solutions have been missing. Hula’s approach, combining hardware and software technologies in one integrated biodiversity monitoring platform, impressed us. We are excited to be backing the team behind Hula on their important mission.”
Florian highlighted a growing trend among companies optimizing land use for biodiversity benefits, especially in light of new reporting requirements. “The demand for primary data is rapidly increasing, not only due to new reporting requirements,” he noted.
With this funding, Hula Earth aims to further develop its platform, which launched earlier this year, supporting industries such as food production, cosmetics, and infrastructure on their journey toward becoming nature-positive.
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/11/munich-based-hula-earth-raises-e1-6-million-aiming-to-scale-biodiversity-monitoring-for-global-industries/
