Warehouse automation company Stow Robotics has acquired a majority stake in collaborative autonomous mobile robot (AMR) company iFollow.
The acquisition of iFollow is backed by Stow Group’s majority shareholder, the Blackstone Group. The partnership with iFollow’s management, who remain on board, is intended to reinforce and build on Stow Robotics’ strategy and positioning in the warehouse automation market.
iFollow, founded in March 2017, is a Paris-based robotics company developing and commercializing market-leading AMRs and a proprietary software suite. Its fleet of AMRs and software is suitable for a wide range of use cases, such as collaborative picking and in- and outbound transport. iFollow is currently accelerating the commercialization and deployment of its AMRs, having deployed them in a variety of applications across different industries and building on a promising pipeline.
Jos De Vuyst, CEO of Stow Group, said, “We are thrilled to welcome iFollow to Stow Robotics and have been impressed by the entire iFollow team. This is another stepping stone for Stow Robotics, adding a company fitting perfectly within our portfolio of scalable automation solutions. We truly believe that our partnership with iFollow will unlock significant synergies with our Atlas 2D pallet solution, that we can meaningfully accelerate iFollow’s growth through our commercial network and that iFollow is the perfect platform for further AMR-based solutions.”
Vincent Jacquemart, co-founder and CEO of iFollow, said, “We are delighted to join forces with Stow Robotics, a leader in warehouse automation. We are convinced this is the right partnership to start iFollow’s next phase of long-term growth, with a reliable, global partner. In addition to its commercial traction, technology-driven approach and its advanced industrial base, we share with Stow the same conviction of the importance of technology in warehouse automation and the future of intralogistics. It’s a very exciting moment for our team, which is looking forward to disrupting the industry even further.”
