Locus Robotics, a Wilmington, MA-based startup, raised $25 million in a Series B funding led by Silicon Valley Scale Venture Partners, with additional participation from existing investors. Locus plans to use the funds to expand into international markets and build up its growing subscription-based robot fleet. Locus business model uses Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) which allows customers to use Locus' solutions without a large-scale capital investment. The story of how Locus came to be is almost as interesting as why their mobile robots and RaaS business mode are getting so much attention and acceptance. In March 2012, in an effort to make their distribution centers (DCs) as efficient as possible, Amazon acquired Kiva Systems for $775 million and almost immediately took them in-house.

Locus Robotics Corp., whose robots help workers fulfill e-commerce orders, raised $25 million in a funding round led by Scale Venture Partners that the company plans to use to develop new products and expand into new markets. The Wilmington, Mass.-based company makes software and autonomous mobile robots that sync up with warehouse management systems to help workers handle orders more efficiently by taking the fastest routes through aisles to fill orders more quickly. The robots resemble motorized stools with shelving and touchscreens. They operate in groups and use sensors to navigate through warehouses as workers pick items and move on. Locus, whose customers include Deutsche Post AG's DHL Supply Chain, says its technology can double the number of items that workers pick per hour.