Alteon raises $2.5m pre-seed to develop long-endurance autonomous aircraft
The Bengaluru aerospace startup will expand engineering teams and test aircraft designed for persistent observation without landing.
Using wind to sustain flight
Alteon is developing an autonomous fixed-wing aircraft for persistent observation of infrastructure, maritime activity and weather, as well as search-and-rescue work. Its flight-control software is designed to use energy in ocean wind gradients to sustain flight, with a stated goal of remaining airborne for more than a year.
Lachy Groom led the $2.5 million pre-seed round, joined by Together Fund and other participants. Alteon will grow its computational-fluid-dynamics and aeronautical-engineering teams, develop autonomous flight controls and fund offshore field testing. The company has demonstrated autonomous manoeuvres with a subscale prototype; the aircraft remains in development.
Use of funds
Expand computational fluid dynamics and aeronautical engineering teams
Develop autonomous flight-control systems
Fund offshore field testing