Skyline Robotics

About Skyline Robotics

Skyline Robotics, established in 2017 by co-founders Avi Abadi and Yaron Schwarcz, is a robotics and AI firm focused on automating high-risk maintenance tasks on skyscrapers, starting with window cleaning. The company emerged from the founders' shared interest in leveraging robotics to remove humans from dangerous jobs; they even got certified and worked as window washers to understand the industry's challenges firsthand. Schwarcz, now the CEO, and Abadi, the CTO, combine their expertise to address the façade maintenance market. Abadi is a robotics domain expert with a background in system controls and managing robotics labs, while Schwarcz has a history in entrepreneurship.

The company operates on a Robotics-as-a-Service (RaaS) business model, leasing its flagship product, Ozmo, to maintenance and cleaning companies. This approach avoids large upfront costs for clients, who are typically building maintenance firms and property managers. Headquartered in New York with its R&D division in Tel Aviv, Israel, Skyline Robotics has secured significant funding, totaling over $19 million through multiple rounds, with investments from firms like The Durst Organization, Gefen Capital, and Karcher New Venture.

Ozmo is an automated system that integrates a KUKA industrial robotic arm with a sophisticated sensor suite and proprietary software. It is designed to be mounted on a building's existing Building Maintenance Unit (BMU), such as a crane or basket. The system uses a combination of LiDAR, force sensors, and computer vision to create a 3D map of the building's exterior, allowing the AI to calculate the most efficient cleaning path in real-time. This technology enables Ozmo to adapt to complex architectural features and variable weather conditions like wind. Key features include a "sense of touch" from force sensors to apply appropriate pressure on glass, the ability to operate up to three times faster than manual cleaners, and the use of a reverse-osmosis water filtration system. By automating this hazardous task, the firm aims to drastically improve worker safety, address labor shortages, and increase operational efficiency. While autonomous, the system is still operated by a human from a safe location on the rooftop.