… U.S. DoD to spend $41.7 billion on unmanned aerial vehicles and systems in 2012-2014 (that’s $13.9 billion per year!) says research firm focused on the aerospace/defense sector.
… Defense spending towers over venture capital investments, eg:
– Aldebaran Robotics (of Nao fame) raised $13 million from Intel Capital, CDC Innovation, iSource and Crédit Agricole Private Equity
– Liquid Robotics (wave gliders) got $22 million from VantagePoint Capital and Schlumberger
– Estonian Fits.me (robotic mannequin) received $1.75 million from the Estonian Development Fund