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 December, early and late January, early and late February, and early March.
Serve Robotics develops autonomous sidewalk delivery robots designed to streamline last-mile logistics. Originally developed as a division within Postmates and later spun out as an independent company, Serve has successfully completed tens of thousands of deliveries in cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco. Their robots operate at Level 4 autonomy, meaning they can navigate sidewalks and avoid obstacles without human intervention, though remote supervisors assist in complex situations like construction detours. Each morning, the bots leave their city depots and position themselves near busy parts of town filled with restaurants, ready to accept jobs from Uber Eats and other partners. Serve’s bots are designed for seamless integration with food delivery platforms, ensuring timely, cost-efficient, and emission-free service for restaurants and retailers. Average delivery time is 18 minutes, and customers receive a notification when the robot arrives, allowing them to press a button to unlock the bot and retrieve their food.
Instead of selling its robots outright, Serve Robotics employs a robots-as-a-service (RaaS) model, providing autonomous delivery as a subscription or per-delivery service. This delivery-as-a-service approach allows businesses to integrate Serve’s robotic fleet without incurring upfront hardware costs. Partners like Uber Eats, 7-Eleven, and Shake Shack pay per completed delivery, aligning costs with actual usage and making robotic delivery scalable. With plans to deploy up to 2,000 robots by the end of 2025, Serve’s model enables businesses to reduce labor expenses, optimize operations, and enhance reliability in last-mile logistics.
“Autonomous delivery should be as accessible as the food being delivered,” says Ali Kashani, co-founder and CEO of Serve Robotics. “By offering delivery as a service, we remove the barriers of ownership, letting businesses focus on growth while we handle the logistics. Our robots don’t call in sick, don’t get stuck in traffic, and don’t require tipping—just reliable, cost-effective service that scales with demand.”
Seven Seas Water Group (SSWG) specializes in decentralized water and wastewater treatment and water reuse/recycling services, offering comprehensive solutions for industries and municipalities facing water scarcity and infrastructure challenges. With more than 200 plants in operation, the company delivers over 20 billion gallons of potable and industrial-grade water each year. Seven Seas’ approach leverages cutting-edge technologies like reverse osmosis, membrane bioreactors, and ultrafiltration, coupled with advanced maintenance systems to ensure optimal performance and minimal downtime. The company’s computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) keeps operations on track and alerts operators to issues that could develop into failures. This approach guarantees safe, reliable, and cost-effective water services, empowering customers to focus on their core operations without the hassle of managing water infrastructure.
As opposed to traditional equipment sales, SSWG’s Water-as-a-Service (WaaS) model eliminates the need for upfront capital investment by covering design, construction, operation, and maintenance. Customers pay only for the water they use—with guaranteed quality and quantity—reducing financial risks and bypassing bureaucratic delays. WaaS offers scalable, modular systems, flexible leasing, and contract options, adapting to changing demands. By shouldering operational risks and ensuring regulatory compliance, Seven Seas provides sustainable and cost-effective water solutions.
Henry Charrabé, CEO, says: “The Water-as-a-Service model enables us to address the financial and operational burdens typically associated with water infrastructure, offering customers a guaranteed water supply without upfront capital expenditure. We handle the construction, operation, and maintenance of the plants, removing organizational setup and operational complexity. And because we continue to own the plants, we’re invested in ensuring their long-term performance. WaaS is therefore a viable tool to stop the build-neglect-rebuild cycle that ends the service lives of so many plants prematurely.”
Verve Motion produces the SafeLift Suit, a lightweight exosuit created to minimize the physical stress on workers who frequently lift heavy boxes and objects. Equipped with inertial measurement sensors, the SafeLift Suit detects motion and delivers assistive force when lifting heavy loads. The sensors also collect 3D motion and force data that identifies risky and unsafe postures and provides actionable reports to both individual workers and supervisors through Verve Logic, the company’s software and data analytics platform. Verve tracks data such as lift count and weight offloaded, pinpoints groups at greater risk of injury through analysis of factors such as role or shift, and offers ergonomic coaching to enhance both individual and group performance. The exosuit offloads up to 40% of the weight a warehouse worker lifts each day, reducing workforce injuries, enhancing overall productivity, and improving worker retention.
Verve provides its exosuits through an annual hardware-as-a-service (HaaS) subscription, allowing businesses to access the technology without the upfront cost of ownership. Each suit costs around $350 per worker per month. The subscription package includes the hardware, software, deployment, onboarding, unlimited 24/7 technical support, regular software updates, warranty, and complementary repair or replacement of any damaged exosuits.
Exotec builds goods-to-person warehouse robotic solutions. Its Skypod autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) move in 3D to reach goods at heights of up to 12 meters, and can retrieve bins or trays stored within the system in less than two minutes. Skypod AMRs facilitate order fulfillment by moving goods from the racks to Exotec’s picking station, where operators handle the final sorting and fulfillment. Exotec also offers Skypath, a modular, plug-and-play conveyer system that can transport up to 2,500 trays or bins per hour. Operations are orchestrated by Deepsky, Exotec’s warehouse execution system (WES) and optimization software. Deepsky leverages advanced algorithms to process and synchronize orders from the WMS and WCS, prioritize them, and trigger appropriate actions. It also tracks operations in real-time and dynamically adjusts routes for optimal performance.
Instead of selling its AMRs as individual hardware units, Exotec provides a comprehensive solution tailored to throughput requirements rather than numbers of robots. The end-to-end offering includes robots, infrastructure, software, regular software updates, maintenance (Exotec employs technicians at each customer site to ensure smooth operations), and data. And the solution is scalable: Robots can be added to a customer’s system in minutes, stations can be integrated within days, and racks can be expanded in just a few weeks.
Rapyuta Robotics
Rapyuta Robotics develops pick-assist robots that work alongside warehouse staff to enhance operations. The company’s PA-AMR robot uses AI to optimize picking routes, transport items, and visualize warehouse data for improved operations—all without requiring changes to the facility’s layout. Rapyuta AFL is an autonomous forklift powered by the company’s proprietary robotics system, rapyuta.io. The AFL is designed for rapid deployment, nighttime operation, and seamless integration with existing workflows, offering real-time remote and productivity monitoring. And Rapyuta ASRS is a modular storage and retrieval system with scalable components and robots powered by multi-robot AI, maximizing storage efficiency and retrieval operations for dynamic warehouse environments.
Rapyuta operates on a robots-as-a-service (RaaS) model, offering businesses access to their robots through flexible subscription plans. This approach eliminates hefty upfront costs, allowing customers to integrate automation seamlessly and scale their robotic fleets up or down based on real-time operational needs. The company’s ROI Guarantee Program aligns Rapyuta’s success with its customers by dynamically adjusting monthly fees based on productivity attainment; if targets are missed, fees are reduced to ensure the desired return on investment. By charging for performance, RaaS ensures that companies only invest in measurable productivity gains and efficiency improvements, making it a cost-effective solution for warehouses. Rapyuta’s contracts include hardware, software, comprehensive support, and ongoing updates to ensure the technology stays current at no extra charge.