The €4,3 million round marks a new stage in the growth of Jaipur Robotics, a Swiss company developing artificial intelligence and computer vision systems for the industrial sector. Headquartered at the Tecnopolo Ticino in Manno, the company will use the new funds to expand its operations outside of Switzerland, further develop its technology platform, and strengthen its team.
The result is also particularly significant for the Ticino innovation ecosystem, where Jaipur Robotics has built a significant part of its journey. Among those who have followed the startup's evolution is the Agire Foundation , the Canton of Ticino's innovation agency, which has supported the company at various stages: from the early stages of the Boldbrain Startup Challenge to its move to the Ticino Technology Park, through coaching activities, meetings with investors, and participation in scouting initiatives.
The Jaipur Robotics case thus illustrates a trajectory that began as an entrepreneurial project still in the experimental phase and, in less than four years, became a company with international operations, dozens of collaborators, and a technology already used in industrial plants.
From the Boldbrain Startup Challenge to the Birth of Jaipur Robotics
The first stage dates back to 2023. Ermes Zamboni and Nikhil Prakash participated in the Boldbrain Startup Challenge with WiSort, an AI-based project initially designed to automate waste separation in bins.
The team finished the program in fifth place and received, among other awards, a desk in the Tecnopolo Ticino coworking space and a prize provided by Hemargroup to refine the prototype.
The experience proves to be a useful step in testing not only the technology but also the business model. The months of coaching allow the group to work on financial strategy, the business model, partnerships, and marketing activities.
Zamboni himself had identified the program as a pivotal moment in the company's development. From that experience, a path was shaped that would gradually lead WiSort to reposition itself and take the name Jaipur Robotics.
On March 1, 2024, the group began using the desk obtained through Boldbrain and moved to the Tecnopolo Ticino in Manno. Around the same time, Jaipur Robotics Sagl was established, later transformed into a public limited company.
However, the startup isn't sticking to its original idea. The technology developed to identify and separate waste is gradually being adapted to more complex industrial needs, with a growing focus on waste-to-energy plants.
Artificial intelligence enters waste-to-energy plants
Jaipur Robotics' current work focuses on the use of computer vision and artificial intelligence in waste treatment plants.
The systems developed by the company allow for real-time observation of materials entering plants, identifying hazardous or non-compliant elements, helping optimize waste mixing, and supporting the automation of certain operations.
The technology is based on a European dataset of over 50 million labeled images. Overall, the company's systems analyze over 5 million tons of waste each year.
The solution is already in use in Switzerland and several European countries. Among the facilities that have adopted the technology is the Giubiasco cantonal waste-to-energy plant, managed by the Cantonal Waste Management Agency (ACR).
In this case, artificial intelligence is used to identify hazardous or bulky materials, with the aim of contributing to the safety of operations and reducing the risk of unplanned interruptions.
For Jaipur Robotics, the relationship with ACR also represents a concrete example of how the local ecosystem has favored the transition from experimentation to field validation.
"Ticino has played a fundamental role in Jaipur's growth," explains Ermes Zamboni, co-founder and CEO of the company. Participation in Boldbrain allowed the startup to connect with the local innovation system and develop relationships with local institutions and organizations. These relationships also led to the collaboration with ACR, which became the company's first Ticino client.
The role of the Agire Foundation in the startup's journey
In the case of Jaipur Robotics, growth was not tied to a single intervention, but to a succession of tools used at different stages of development.
It is precisely in this continuity that the role of the Agire Foundation emerges , which since 2011 has operated as the innovation agency of the Canton of Ticino with the aim of promoting technological development, business competitiveness and the creation of qualified jobs.
After participating in the Boldbrain Startup Challenge and arriving at the Tecnopolo Ticino, in 2024 Agire also supported Jaipur Robotics through coaching activities dedicated to financing, meetings with potential investors and participation in Scouting for Investors , an initiative designed to foster contact between startups and investors.
The journey preceded other important financial milestones. In 2025, Jaipur Robotics closed a pre-seed round led by TiVentures and raised an additional CHF 150,000 from Venture Kick.
Meanwhile, the physical presence at Tecnopolo Ticino has also grown. As of March 1, 2025, the company left the desk assigned after Boldbrain to move into its first 40-square-meter office.
The sequence of these steps conveys the image of support that adapts to the diverse needs of a business: training and coaching in the initial phase, space and relationships during the start-up phase, and support in raising capital in the later phases.
An ecosystem that accompanies the different phases
This is one of the aspects highlighted by Stefano Rizzi, vice president of the Agire Foundation and director of the Canton of Ticino's Economics Division.
"Jaipur Robotics' journey is a concrete example of what an innovation ecosystem should enable: offering a company targeted tools for each stage of its growth," Rizzi observes.
Agire's vice president attributes the result primarily to the entrepreneurs and their team, highlighting their ability to evolve the initial project, engage with the market, and build a company oriented towards international markets in just a few years.
The story thus takes on a significance that goes beyond a single capital raise. For the Ticino system, it also represents a case of continuity between startup programs, dedicated infrastructure, support activities, and connections with the investment world.
Forty employees and new hires in Ticino
Jaipur Robotics' growth is also reflected in the company's size. The group currently employs 40 people across Switzerland and Asia, six of whom work in Ticino.
The new financing should lead to further strengthening of the workforce, with new positions also aimed at local professionals. The growth of the local workforce will accompany the company's planned international expansion.
The goal is to consolidate its presence in the Waste-to-Energy sector and bring the platform to new markets, while continuing to specialize the applications developed for waste treatment plants.
Manno as an international starting point
The trajectory of Jaipur Robotics therefore started from Manno, but has now taken on an international dimension.
The Ticino Technology Park, managed by the Agire Foundation, hosts around thirty young companies operating in various sectors and offers spaces and opportunities for entrepreneurs, researchers, and investors to meet.
For Jaipur Robotics, the transition from a coworking desk to a first office and, simultaneously, from the WiSort project to a platform for industrial plants speaks to a transformation that occurred in a relatively short time.
The €4,3 million round now opens a new phase. The resources will be used to enter new markets, develop the platform, and grow the team. Ticino will continue to be one of the company's operational bases, with the stated intention of increasing the number of people involved there as well.
The story of Jaipur Robotics thus fits into the broader Ticino innovation landscape: a project born in a startup competition, grown through relationships and tools provided by the local ecosystem, and now seeking international capital without shifting its focus from the local area.
