Aerial mobility firm H3 Dynamics raises US$26m in Series B funding

AERIAL mobility firm H3 Dynamics has raised US$26 million in Series B funding to embark on its next phase of growth.

The round was led by Japan's Mirai Creation Fund, which is managed by SPARX Asset Management on behalf of Toyota Motor Corporation and the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, the company said in a press statement on Tuesday.

Other investors include EDBI, the investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board, as well as ACA investors, Capital Management Group, the Grosvenor Group, Audacy Ventures, Ascent Hydrogen Fund and French strategic investors ATEQ.

H3 Dynamics was formed in 2015 to build an autonomous charging infrastructure for battery drones and provide maintenance and monitoring services. The same infrastructure, once established, is able to support much longer-range, unmanned systems capable of flying for hours using hydrogen technology, the company said.

It is entering the second phase of its 3-phase roadmap, which is to expand its first-phase revenue streams. The first phase focused on supplying autonomous inspection and incident response solutions powered by drones.

For the second phase, H3 Dynamics will introduce longer-range hydrogen-powered aircraft that can carry more and more weight in the mid-mile. In the third phase, it plans to shift from unmanned cargo to manned hydrogen aircraft, including passengers.

The company will also look to expand its engineering and sales teams in Austin, Texas, where it produces and ships complete hydrogen drones, integrated aerial fuel cell propulsion and refuelling units, as well as Toulouse in France, where it develops larger hydrogen systems, works on hydrogen aircraft integration and carries out test flights.

Recently, H3 Dynamics partnered French conglomerate Thales to test an autonomous drone flight monitoring system in Singapore's urban environment. Both parties plan to build an autonomous urban air mobility infrastructure, starting with tiny camera drones but with a view to evolve towards large, unmanned cargo.