.lumen (DOTLUMEN) is thrilled to announce the successful closure of a €5 million investment round, led by Catalyst Romania, aimed at bringing the Glasses for the Blind to market and advancing the Pedestrian Autonomous Driving (PAD AI) technology.
This milestone investment, also includes participation from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund, Tigrim Capital, and a €1 million crowdfunding component facilitated by SeedBlink, raised in a record-breaking seven hours.
With the first generation of .lumen Glasses undergoing regulatory testing and expected to launch in Europe within a few months, and the second generation already in development, this investment round will support market entry activities across Europe while paving the way for expansion into the USA and other international markets.
“This investment round brings so much competence onboard, from experienced investors that can help the next growth phase of the company. Just a few years ago I started this company with the purpose of helping people. Now, Catalyst Romania and EIC Fund, among other great investors, are joining our vision. We are also very proud to keep this company a product of Romanian and European Innovation, and the selection of investors proves just that” – Cornel Amariei – Founder & CEO of .lumen.
“We at Catalyst Romania are proud to lead this important investment round of €5 million into one of the most innovative, socially impactful, and highly recognized Romanian technology startups, dotLumen. It is our mission to support such breakthrough and visionary technologies from Romania and Eastern Europe, and to back great teams from the region such as the Cluj based team of dotLumen led by founder Cornel Amariei” said Marius Ghenea, Managing Partner of Catalyst Romania.
Svetoslava Georgieva, Chair of the EIC Fund Board, said: “The unique form of financing via EIC - combining grants and equity – is proving itself highly attractive to Europe's most promising start-ups. We are delighted with the EIC Fund's investment in .lumen, an innovative company pushing the boundaries of Pedestrian Autonomous Driving technology. We believe in their tremendous potential of their technology and are excited to support their growth and development.”
“We at Tigrim are incredibly proud to join .lumen’s mission to reimagine pedestrian mobility and enable more inclusive futures. Their pioneering Pedestrian Autonomous Driving technology not only empowers the visually impaired, but also has the potential to reshape urban navigation for everyone. This aligns perfectly with our commitment to invest in breakthrough innovations that drive positive global impact. We look forward to supporting .lumen as they scale their vision across Europe and beyond.” – Johan Törnqvist, CEO at Tigrim
"Raising €1 million for .lumen in just 7 hours via SeedBlink stands as a testament for the power of innovation and a shared belief in a brighter future. Championing .lumen’s groundbreaking work celebrates European ingenuity and the profound social impact of their technology—both core to our mission. It’s an honour and a privilege to support .lumen’s team as they scale and build a lasting legacy of progress and inclusivity for generations to come." said Andrei Dudoiu, CEO at SeedBlink.
About .lumen
.lumen is the research start-up which builds Pedestrian Autonomous Driving (PAD AI), first showcased in the Glasses for the Blind. Founded by Cornel Amariei, inspired by his family – all of them having disabilities, the Glasses replicate the main features of the Guide Dog, and more, in a scalable product. The same software coordinating the Glasses, called PAD AI, will allow humanoid robotics to navigate pedestrian environments.
About Catalyst Romania
Catalyst Romania is a pioneer in private equity and venture capital investments in Romania by launching the country’s first dedicated fund in 2012, financed through the JEREMIE initiative and then, in the end of 2020, launching its second-generation fund, Catalyst Romania Fund II. The Catalyst Romania funds focus on providing early growth capital to young technology and tech-enabled companies from Romania and Eastern Europe, having potential to become leaders in the CEE region, or to reach a global presence and success.
Catalyst Romania Fund II is VC fund managed by Catalyst II GP, both companies being organized under Luxembourg laws and acting as an alternative investment fund and respectively as an alternative investment fund manager.
About InnovFin Equity and JEREMIE Holding Romania
Catalyst Romania Fund II is supported by JEREMIE Holding Fund Romania, an investment program between EIF and the Government of Romania, where EIF acts on behalf and for the ultimate benefit of the Romanian Government and invests the returns generated by the operations carried out within the JEREMIE Holding Fund Romania during the eligible period 2007-2013, and InnovFin Equity, with the financial support of the European Union under the Horizon 2020 Financial Instruments and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) established under the Investment Plan for Europe. The objective of EFSI is to support financing and implementing productive investments in the European Union and to ensure increased access to funding.
About EIF
The European Investment Fund is part of the European Investment Bank Group. Its central mission is to support European microenterprises and SMEs by providing access to finance. EIF develops venture capital and growth instruments, guarantees, and microfinance instruments explicitly targeting this market segment. Through its role, EIF promotes EU objectives in support of innovation, research and development, entrepreneurship, growth, and employment.
About EIC Fund
The European Innovation Council Fund from the European Commission is an agnostic Fund: it invests across all technologies and verticals, and all EU countries and countries associated to Horizon Europe. It provides the investment component of the EIC Accelerator blended finance. The European Investment Bank acts as investment adviser to the EIC Fund.
The EIC Fund aims to fill a critical financing gap and its main purpose is to support companies in the development and commercialisation of disruptive technologies, bridging with and crowding in market players, and further sharing risk by building a large network of capital providers and strategic partners suitable for co-investments and follow-on funding.
The Fund pays particular attention to the empowerment and support of female founders as well as the ambition to reduce the innovation divide among EU countries.
About Tigrim
Tigrim is a private investment firm dedicated to fuelling the growth of unlisted companies ready to reach new heights.
Focusing on the Nordics and northern Europe, we believe in staying close to the businesses we invest in, offering not just capital but active support to help them thrive.
With a broad investment scope, Tigrim welcomes conversations with visionary entrepreneurs seeking a dedicated partner to drive their ambitions forward.
About SeedBlink
SeedBlink is the all-in-one equity and investment platform that provides the infrastructure, financial services and network coverage for European tech companies and their stakeholders to access, manage and trade equity at every stage of growth.
SeedBlink S.A. is registered in the Register of the Romanian Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF), under number PJR28FSFPR/400001, as of 03.11.2022 with an EU passport as per European Securities and Market Authority (ESMA) register of crowdfunding services providers. More information at www.seedblink.com.