Putting the network to work

NAUST Robotics reduces bird damage in agricultural fields by using automatic drones equipped with speakers. On average, 30% of the crops are lost each year due to bird damage, and NAUST Robotics’ technology is working to replace ineffective scaring methods and increase agricultural yield.

“Network is huge. Whether it's investors, which are difficult to find and identify the right ones, or potential partners or customers – networking is a key tool used to make business.” - Guifré Vidal

For NAUST Robotics co-founder, Guifré Vidal, the close mentorship and extensive network provided by the Beyond Beta Robotics Incubator facilitated by Odense Robotics help open doors. From navigating growing pains to getting meetings with relevant investors, the team is able to lean on its network for more than just basic tools.

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A close collaboration

NAUST Robotics and their mentors keep a close working relationship, where they communicate on almost a daily basis. “Our mentors are really open-minded and willing to help. You can really feel that they are a part of the team, and that is a huge plus.”

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The value provided by these mentors often goes above and beyond. “We feel the mentorship and teachings match a more mature stage. At other incubators, you might be learning just the basics, but for us, we know we can go to them for much more like approaching investors and strategic considerations for the future.”

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A local perspective

In addition, their mentors share an extensive and growing network that the team can tap into. Guifré reflects, “They know everyone. We can just ask them to put us in contact with a person who specialized in something specific, and they will come up with several names in just a minute.” Having access to these talents helps the team sharpen its product offering and develop it in collaboration with feedback from the community.

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For a startup like NAUST Robotics, insight from within the industry is proving crucial. “The whole team is international, so we don’t have a whole lot of connections in Denmark,” Guifré shares, “so it makes a lot of sense for us to join incubators like this one, whose members are Danish and have been in the industry for many years.”

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Today, NAUST Robotics continues to participate in Beyond Beta’s Robotics Incubator and work with their mentors Thomas Gammelgaard and Peter Smedegaard from Odense Robotics to develop their product and gain insight into their market.