Locus raises $22 million to automate logistics

Locus, a logistics and supply chain automation platform that helps shippers optimize their route planning, track orders, and access analytics, has raised $22 million in a series B round of funding from Falcon Edge Capital, Tiger Global Management, Exfinity Venture Partners, and Blume Ventures.

Founded out of India in 2015, Locus targets myriad industries, including ecommerce, retail, and home services, with the promise of improving logistics planning, management, and tracking.

The Locus platform constitutes four core components, including dispatcher, which looks at all the key factors — such as vehicle availability, traffic, and historical data — to optimize routes algorithmically.

Above: Rout planning and optimization with Locus

Then there is MotionTrack, which offers real-time data and visualizations of where all the loads are at any given time. This includes estimated times of arrivals for each shipment and rerouting, should on-the-ground conditions change.

Above: Real-time fleet tracking through Locus

Additional core facets of Locus include Intellisort, which offers automated shipment sorting, and FieldPro travel planning tools for sales personnel.

The company has claimed a number of big-name customers since it launched in India, including online grocery store Bigbasket. Last year, Locus began expanding in Southeast Asia and eventually launched in North America. The company had previously raised around $4 million, and with another $22 million in the bank it plans to invest in global expansion, which includes building out its team in New York.

“Locus is on an unprecedented path to automate every possible decision in the supply chain,” said Locus CEO Nishith Rastogi. “Locus provides autonomous supply chain optimization, thus minimizing the dependency on human intelligence, built by an incredible team of PhDs and engineers.”

Automation is infiltrating just about every industry, and the logistics realm is no different. Loadsmart, for example, uses AI and myriad data sources to automate truckload booking and related administrative procedures, while Convoy recently claimed 100% automation in matching freight loads with trucks. Elsewhere, Uber’s trucking platform, Uber Freight, uses machine learning to give shippers accurate rates two weeks in advance.

The global logistics market was pegged at $8.1 trillion in 2015, a figure that could double by 2023. That is why optimizing the processes involved in getting goods from A to B is emerging as such a big focus for startups and investors alike.

“We believe the trillion-dollar global logistics market is ripe for disruption via technological change, particularly AI and machine learning-driven solutions,” added Falcon Edge Capital cofounder Navroz D. Udwadia.