As demand for real estate VR soars, Founders Fund lands $16M round on Giraffe360 platform • TechCrunch

The real estate industry now demands high-quality photography, floor plans, and virtual tours, so the software provider industry in the space is booming. The whole thing accelerated during the pandemic when many property visits shifted from physical to virtual, and this trend has continued to increase.

Players in space include Walnut, Stally, Capterra… the list goes on. There is also Matterport which does virtual tours, but its customers are photographers.

In 2020, another player, Giraffe360 raised $4.5 million in a funding round led by LAUNCHub Ventures and Hoxton Ventures.

It has a robotic camera, combined with a subscription service, that allows real estate agents and brokers to generate high-resolution photos of properties, floor plans, and virtual tours. The subscription grants the owner access to the camera, AI-based image processing software and cloud storage, as well as other services.

When real estate agents use Giraffe360, it essentially removes photographers from the process.

It has now raised $16 million in new funds led by Founders Fund, the San Francisco-based VC whose portfolio includes names including Airbnb, Spotify and SpaceX.

Existing investors LAUNCHub Ventures, Hoxton Ventures, HCVC (Hardware Club) and Change Ventures also participated.

To date, the company has raised $22 million in equity and $9 million in venture capital debt. It was founded in 2016 in Riga, Latvia by two brothers, Mikus Opelts and Madars Opelts, and is headquartered in London, UK.

The startup is also launching the latest improved version of its camera, dubbed Giraffe Go Cam. It’s 30% lighter, loads faster, and comes with 500GB of built-in storage. The camera uses a high specification sensor, LIDAR laser and robotics.

Founders Fund Director Delian Asparouhov said in a statement: “Having been involved with a number of PropTech startups such as OpenDoor, we have recognized that some of these advanced tech companies are not seeing their needs met, which is means that the mass market is definitely not satisfied with their needs. Giraffe360 was a no-brainer and is really well suited to meet the needs of the market, both from a hardware and software perspective.

Alongside the latest capital raise, Giraffe360 secured an additional $6 million in long-term loans from London-based venture debt provider Columbia Lake Partners.

Giraffe360 CEO Mikus Opelts said, “We are very pleased to partner with Founders Fund. It is one of the strongest brands in the venture capital industry, with a solid track record in supporting category-defining companies. The new Giraffe Go Cam and funding will help guide the transition to more immersive online property experiences as the world takes a more remote approach to properties online.