Edinburgh-founded robotics start-up raises $1 million to help solve $100 billion challenge
“ScrubMarine is an excellent example of high-potential engineering innovation emerging from the UK” – Jess Jackson, PXN Ventures
An Edinburgh-founded robotics start-up has raised just over $1 million (£750,000) to help global shipping operators slash their fuel bills and cut emissions.
ScrubMarine, founded by 21-year-old robotics engineer Rohith Devanathan while he was studying at Heriot-Watt University, has secured the pre-seed funding to develop an autonomous system designed to clean and inspect ship hulls.
The investment will be used to complete the firm’s prototype, expand its engineering team across Edinburgh and Whitehaven, and progress towards pilot deployments with ship operators.
Biofouling, the build-up of marine growth from molluscs, crustaceans and slime on ship hulls, can increase fuel consumption by up to 40 per cent, costing global shipping more than $100 billion annually and significantly increasing emissions. With the International Maritime Organisation tightening efficiency and sustainability requirements, hull condition is becoming a critical factor in fleet performance.
Devanathan said: “Scotland has a strong engineering and maritime heritage, and Edinburgh has been a great base for developing this technology. Shipping’s efficiency and safety challenges are global, but they’re exactly the kind of real-world problems robotics is well placed to solve.”
He added: “This investment allows us to accelerate development and move towards the first pilots with major operators. Our goal is to make underwater maintenance safer, more efficient and fully data-driven.”
ScrubMarine, which is headquartered in Whitehaven with an engineering base in Edinburgh, is said to have secured letters of support from operators including Caledonian MacBrayne. The company was recently selected for the government-backed Global Business Innovation Programme in Houston, and a pilot scheme with a UK ferry operator is planned for 2026. It is preparing for international pilots and a larger seed round next year.
The funding round has been led by NPIF II - PXN Equity Finance, which is managed by PXN Ventures as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II) with participation from prominent strategic investors including SFC Capital, Graham Westgarth, former president of the UK Chamber of Shipping, and Colin Greene, a former Apple country boss.
Jess Jackson at PXN Ventures said: “ScrubMarine is an excellent example of high-potential engineering innovation emerging from the UK. We’re excited to support the team as they scale their technology and prepare for commercial pilots.”
Ed Stevenson, principal at SFC Capital, added: “ScrubMarine is building a smart, scalable solution to a costly problem that affects almost every vessel in operation. Rohith and the ScrubMarine team combine strong engineering talent with a clear understanding of the operational realities of global shipping.”
Meanwhile, Edinburgh-based wearables technology firm StretchSense, which specialises in high-tech data capture gloves, has secured its latest external investment, a $2.3m (£1.75m) round led by PXN Ventures and supported by Scottish Enterprise. To date, StretchSense has raised almost $20m through three external rounds.
The firm’s gloves, built on almost a decade of hand data capture, are said to deliver a lifelike training experience that builds muscle memory and translates to real world skills, enhanced with haptic technology that creates realistic sensations by using vibrations when touching digital objects.
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