Drone Delivery Startup Zipline Boosts Valuation To $4.2 Billion
Summary
The company announced fast-casual food chain Sweetgreen, Michigan Medicine and several other health systems as partners.Ziplines success to date has come in part from pursuing its technology in the developing world, pending further U.S. regulatory approval. The company began deploying its autonomous delivery drones in Rwanda in 2016, then expanded to Ghana; in the early months of the pandemic, business surged as it delivered blood and Covid-19 vaccines in those African nations. Those regulatory hurdles are getting closer to resolution, providing a potentially lucrative business opportunity for investors who came to the negotiating table in recent weeks.Rinaudo Cliffton, a former professionally ranked rock climber, previously told Forbes that he co-founded the company in 2013 with Keenan Wyrobek, who is its chief technology officer. The companys origins, however, date back to Romotive, a robotics toy startup that Rinaudo Cliffton launched in 2011 as part of former Zappos CEO Tony Hsiehs Downtown Project in Las Vegas. )After pivoting to drones and moving to the Bay Area, Ziplines cofounders initially aimed to corner the medical supply market, rather than retail goods.