Last week Sberbank, Russia’s national savings bank, announced the launch of a three-month “intelligent robotics acceleration program” in partnership with the Internet Initiatives Development Fund (IIDF, or FRII in Russian), Russia’s biggest fund for early-stage startups.
The selected startups will benefit from Sberbank’s infrastructure and resources, including its client base, as well as from the IIDF’s marketing and legal support.
The application is already open, although the deadline has not been indicated yet.
The program will target Russian projects which are engaged in the creation of personal robot assistants, logistics robots, collaborative industrial robot manipulators, unmanned autonomous transport vehicles (road and air), and industrial exoskeletons.
During the program, startups will be granted access to the resources of Sberbank’s Robotics Laboratory. The laboratory was created in 2017 to research new intelligent robot technology, develop prototypes of products and carry out pilot projects for Sberbank Group.
Positive impact on customers’ business
At the end of the program, the teams will refine their business plan and marketing strategies, and prepare a minimum viable product (MVP). Some of the startups will be able to put test their project with Sberbank.
“As one of Russia’s largest tech companies, Sberbank has needs in robotic technology. The launch of a corporate accelerator focused on intelligent robotics will help us find and deploy new projects and tech solutions to enhance bank operations. We also hope this initiative will have a positive impact on our clients’ businesses and our partners,” commented Stanislav Kuznetsov, Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board of Sberbank.
On its side, the IIDF will provide the accelerator with consultancy, educational, marketing and legal support. The fund will also set up meetings with top industry specialists and individual trackers.
“The launch of a joint accelerator is a major landmark for the market, and presents new opportunities for startups,” said Kirill Varlamov, CEO of the IIDF.
“We see this segment as very promising – according to our estimates, the global robotics tech market will grow to $54 billion by 2020,” he added.
Source: Sberbank
