Robotics firm acquires local startup for $25 million

Judah Longgrer had quite the summer. Since June, the St. Petersburg resident and CEO of Tampa-based Nickelytics has completed four strategic acquisitions and partnerships and launched a $3 million seed round .

Kiwibot announced Sept. 19 – three days before the official start of fall – that it acquired the local advertising technology startup for $25 million. The Berkeley, California-based company began utilizing semi-autonomous wheeled platforms to make food deliveries on university campuses in 2017.

The robots still draw a crowd of curious bystanders, and the deal's stakeholders believe it will revolutionize the evolving world of mobile advertising. Longgrear noted that Kiwibot recently acquired a manufacturing facility in Taiwan and now holds over 150 patents.

"Robotics, to me, is going to be one of the biggest industries over the next 10 years," Longgrear told the Catalyst. "To be on the ground floor, relatively speaking, with an established company that is one of the leaders in the space got me really excited for the future."

Nickelytics evolved from The Nickel Ride, an advertising-supported rideshare company, in 2019. The startup provides vehicle-focused, out-of-home advertising campaigns.

A Texas-based venture capital group bought Nickelytics for an undisclosed amount in August 2023. Longgrear sold his remaining equity to Kiwibot – the startup's sole owner.

However, the local entrepreneur "somehow got two jobs out of this." Longgrear is now a co-founder of Kiwibot and CEO of North American operations as company leadership begins a new chapter and plans to expand exponentially.

"I'm going to help grow their footprint," he added. "They're on 20 campuses, and we're going to be working to get that number to over 100. As well as help with fundraising."

Longgrear began creating a holistic ecosystem for Nickelytics earlier this year. He acquired printing solutions , in-car digital marketing and fleet graphic advertising companies.

In August, he announced a partnership with Sarasota's NILENT to provide more name, image and likeness ( NIL ) opportunities for college athletes, corporate sponsors and financial distribution collectives. "Nickelytics is still going to operate as an independent business," Longgrear said.

The startup has ventured into the nascent robot delivery space. In March, Longgrear partnered with Kiwibot competitor Starship to create wrapped advertising for a Huntsman Mental Health Institute and Ad Council campaign on the University of California-Los Angeles and University of Utah campuses.

Longgrear noted that Nickelytics and Kiwibot also collaborated on previous initiatives, and company leadership established chemistry. "They would have been very successful with or without us," he said.

"We're just going to help accelerate that by subsidizing the cost of these deployments through advertising," Longgrear elaborated. "We want to do it in a very strategic, aesthetically pleasing way while making sure we're delivering great value to our customers on the robotics side.

"A lot of the top companies in the stock market, their number one revenue line is advertising."

Nickelytics counts high-profile companies Amazon Web Services (AWS), Coinbase and DirectTV as clients, which now have access to over 500 Kiwibots. Advertisers can now reach target demographics in high-traffic areas across more than 20 states.

That number will grow exponentially. Longgrear said he recently inked an over six-figure contract with AWS to conduct an ad campaign in five countries on four continents following a successful U.S. pilot program.

"It is the world's largest out-of-home robotics campaign ever," Longgrear said.

In a prepared statement, Kiwibots global CEO Felipe Chavez said the acquisition will strategically position the company as a market leader. "By integrating our technologies and scaling our operations, we're laying the groundwork for global expansion and continue innovation that will bring a new edge to advertising."

Nickelytics will continue calling Tampa home. Longgrear said the deal shows area startups can compete in an international arena.

He also believes it will create a ripple effect. In addition to encouraging other entrepreneurs, Longgrear said the acquisition will lead to new hires.

"A big part of our success has been the support we've received from the Tampa Bay community," he said. "It's just been great to see the growth from there and have that be our headquarters."