HaaS 100 (late February 2025)

Hardware-as-a-service (HaaS) is gaining momentum across a variety of industries. Many of the early adopters of HaaS are in robotics, offering robots-as-a-service (RaaS) to decrease barriers to entry and improve overall value to customers. Others offer machine-as-a-service (MaaS), device-as-a-service (DaaS), or equipment-as-a-service (EaaS).

Some companies pitch outcomes more than assets, offering data-as-a-service or platform-as-a-service models. From network-as-a-service to facades cleaning; managed service providers (MSPs) to managed security service providers (MSSPs); and autonomous construction equipment to diagnostic sensors and 3D printers, these companies are on the cutting-edge of their fields.

This post is part of a series about modern hardware companies, their business models, and the future of HaaS. For more, see posts from early and late November, early and late December, early and late January, and early February.

Instock

• Founded date: 2020
• Location: San Carlos, California
• Employees: ~45
• What they do: Automated storage and retrieval solutions (ASRS) for micro-fulfillment operators
• Key customers: GoBolt
• Website: instock.com

Instock builds automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS) for the e-commerce and logistics industries. The company’s modular racking system supports multiple configurations and extends up to the full height of a facility. Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) operate seamlessly within the structure, utilizing magnetic technology to move across floors, walls, and ceilings as they fetch bins for operators at workstations. Capable of lifting up to 66 pounds, the robots are designed to keep fulfilling tasks during outages, conduct ongoing health checks for preventative maintenance, and independently dock at charging stations when needed. Since the robots are the only dynamic element in the setup, maintenance is minimal and straightforward. Instock’s simulation-first approach lets facilities create a digital twin of their fulfillment site, evaluating the ASRS’ performance before any physical installation takes place.

While components of its offering are available for purchase (grids and bins can be purchased outright, rented, or acquired over time), Instock also offers its solution under a robots-as-a-service (RaaS) model. Customers select the storage capacity (measured in total number of bins) and throughput capacity (measured in bin-presentations per hour) they need and are billed each quarter accordingly. With no vendor lock-ins, Instock ensures customers have the freedom to scale according to their storage and throughput requirements. The subscription includes end-to-end support, covering installation, maintenance, and integration with Incloud, the company’s cloud platform for managing system operations effectively.

“Fulfillment operators face mounting pressure to enhance speed, efficiency, and accuracy while cutting costs,” says Yegor Anchyshkin, Instock's co-founder and CEO. “Our mission is to empower businesses with flexible and accessible goods-to-person automation. RaaS delivers value from day one, minimizes risks for 3PLs and retailers, and enables businesses of all sizes to power-up their operations with cutting-edge solutions.”

Gecko Robotics

• Founded date: 2013
• Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Employees: ~280
• What they do: AI and robotics for non-destructive testing
• Key customers: Marathon Petroleum Corporation, HF Sinclair Corporation, Georgia-Pacific, Mitsubishi Corporation, Siemens Energy
• Website: geckorobotics.com

Gecko Robotics is an AI + Robotics [AIR] technology company that builds robots for non-destructive testing in the oil & gas, pulp & paper, power, mining, chemical, and defense industries. The robots climb the walls of structures such as dams and ship hulls and use ultrasonic sensors to scan, inspect, and quantify damage like rust, corrosion, cracks, and weld defects. As the robots scan, Gecko’s AI-powered operating platform, Cantilever, generates digital models of the infrastructure alongside data on its current and predicted health, and offers up actionable data for both immediate and long-term predictive maintenance. Gecko’s solution enables plant operators to make smarter maintenance decisions using data on corrosion rates and the projected lifespan of assets.

Rather than selling their robots outright, Gecko offers them as part of a more comprehensive robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) offering. Customers can see the immediate impact of robotics—increased safety, faster inspection times, improved data accuracy, and more reliable assets—without the need to invest in capital or additional staff to manage their own robotic equipment. Gecko’s team participates in the inspections, and is responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the robots.

Ava Robotics

• Founded date: 2016
• Location: Somerville, Massachusetts
• Employees: ~15
• What they do: Autonomous telepresence robots
• Key customers: Cigna, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Baxter, HP
• Website: avarobotics.com
  

Ava Robotics builds autonomous telepresence robots for workplaces. The robot—also called Ava—autonomously navigates spaces (offices, hospitals, manufacturing facilities, etc.) with the use of a 3D depth camera, lidar, and an inertial measurement unit, mapping its environment as it goes. Ava is equipped with enterprise-level video conferencing capabilities including high-fidelity speakers and an omnidirectional microphone, so once it arrives at its destination, it supports everything from remote healthcare visitation, to distributed workforce meetings, to remote facility tours, to security patrolling, to “on-site” training or inspection.

The company offers its Ava fleet through a robots-as-a-service (RaaS) pricing model, in which the robots aren’t sold outright. Rather, customers pay a monthly fee for access to the equipment alongside additional services Ava Robotics provides. Early pricing for each robot was less than $1,000/month, and included technical support.

“Robotics companies I’ve worked at in the past have sold their hardware outright; that was their only pricing model,” says Youssef Saleh, Founder and CEO at Ava (formerly at iRobot). “At Ava, we wanted to try a different approach. The RaaS model allows companies to ‘hire’ Ava at a monthly cost, spread out over time. Opex expenditures tend to be more appealing to corporations—those monthly fees pay themselves back in a single business trip that doesn’t have to be taken thanks to telepresence.”

Spot AI

• Founded date: 2018
• Location: San Francisco, California
• Employees: ~130
• What they do: AI-powered camera systems
• Key customers: SpaceX; MIXT; Cheeseman Transport; the City of Cambridge, Maryland
• Website: spot.ai

Spot AI develops a system that leverages AI to analyze and extract insights from security camera footage. The data the company pulls from the cameras is searchable by text or image queries. Spot’s cameras include the 81B, for areas that require long-distance viewing; the 81D, for monitoring areas prone to vandalism; and the 81P, for dynamic environments such as stadiums and airports. While the company offers a suite of premium IP cameras, Spot’s proprietary software works with footage from any camera—however analog—to read and categorize the video captured. Users can monitor live feeds of their locations on a unified dashboard from any device, scrub video with AI-based attribute search, conduct people and presence searches, track and analyze idle time, and quickly share footage via text or email.

Customers can choose to run Spot’s software on their own existing cameras, or utilize the company’s cameras for a complete solution. Spot’s standard IP cameras are free, and its specialty cameras are available for purchase. The company employs a hybrid hardware-as-a-service (HaaS) pricing model, in which customers own the hardware but pay ongoing subscription fees for the software. Fees vary based on the number of camera feeds, days of storage retention, and license term. Subscriptions include dedicated onboarding, training and support, and automated software updates every two weeks.

Matternet

• Founded date: 2011
• Location: Mountain View, California
• Employees: ~40
• What they do: Drones and landing stations for autonomous delivery
• Key customers: Labor Berlin, Ospedale Regionale di Lugano (EOC), WakeMed Health, Wake Forest Baptist Health
• Website: matternet.com

Matternet is an urban drone logistics platform whose flagship product is the M2 Drone. The M2 is designed to travel up to 12 miles and carry payloads of up to 4.4 pounds for fast, zero-emission, last-mile logistics. While the company’s primary customers are in healthcare, Matternet also leases its platform to logistics companies and is expanding into e-commerce and restaurant delivery. The drones allow hospitals and clinics to send specimens to labs minutes after they’re collected so urgent samples can be rapidly processed, and critical medications can be delivered between facilities for a more integrated healthcare network. Logistics partners include UPS, Swiss Post, Japan Airlines, and Ameriflight.

Rather than selling its hardware as standalone equipment, Matternet offers its drones as part of a holistic drone-as-a-service (DaaS) platform. The solution includes the drones, a landing station with automated loading and unloading, and Matternet’s proprietary software platform, which generates routes, monitors, commands, and controls all Matternet assets. Depending on the customer and the contract, the solution also includes a payload system for medical grade and temperature-controlled payloads.