A Manchester company behind baby monitoring technology products has raised £1.15 million in seed funding.
Dote, formerly known as Aibytech, was founded in 2018 by Ste Senior, who wanted to minimise stress for modern-day parents.
Described as an integrated in-and-out-of-home ecosystem, its products – set to launch across UK retail and to consumers in 2025 – include an AI-powered smart baby monitor, an app, three advanced strollers and travel system, a car seat and a cot.
Dote Buddy, the AI-powered monitor, can be switched from the cot to the hood of the pram, into the car and back again in seconds while providing parents with real-time personalised data on their baby. Its standout stroller – the B-Evolv Pushchair and travel system – features a patented ball and dynamic steering system, delivering better manoeuverability and comfort on any terrain.
The funding round follows £600,000 in pre-seed funding, with additional investment this time led by an investment group based in Dubai and further business and technology investors including Luke Pilfold-Thomas and Dominic Miller.
The management team includes COO Ralph Wood, a former Dyson engineer and product development lead; CTO George Goudie; CMO Denise Namakando, formerly of Dyson, Unilever and Owlet Baby Care; and, appointed last month, sales director Joe Swanston.
“Parenting has never been so tough and each new generation is burdened with more stress than the last,” said Senior. “We don’t think it should be this way and believe that there’s a solution in technology to not only help us remove some of the stress that comes with being a modern-day parent, but also make things easier and happier for us and our children.
“That’s what Dote is about and we’re using this investment to help us with the final elements of product development before we launch across UK retail next year as well as bolstering the incredible team we already have on board that’s made Dote what it is today.
“This is only the beginning and we really believe this could be a game-changer for parents.”
Dote is establishing academic partnerships in universities up and down the country so it can provide paediatric research institutions with infant data to identify ways in which babies and their parents can be better supported ‘from the very beginning of their story’.
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