Borobotics develops geothermal drilling robot
Borobotics, a ZHAW spin-off, has won the third stage of Venture Kick and plans to revolutionize the market for geothermal heating processes with a low-cost and space-saving drilling robot. This is intended to facilitate the expensive production of geothermal probes and drive the energy turnaround in geothermal energy.
Borobotics has developed an autonomous and energy-efficient solution, namely a drilling robot that, together with the additional equipment, requires up to 90% less space compared to conventional machines, while reducing costs, noise pollution and CO2 emissions from drilling. Revenue is generated through a leasing model in which drilling contractors would pay per meter drilled. In Switzerland and Germany, only 1.7 million additional geothermal probes are planned by 2035. Borobotics offers a solution for both with its autonomous and space-saving robots and aims to capture a significant market share.
The company emerged from a research project at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences and plans to invest the 150,000 Swiss francs awarded by Venture Kick in several drilling tests of its robot. The initiator and driving force behind the project is Dr. Hans-Jörg Dennig, a mechanical engineer, lecturer and experienced founder. He is assisted by two co-founders: Philipp Ganz (engineering) and Moritz Pill (commercialization and development opportunities). "We were very pleased with our experience with Venture Kick. The program has proven to be very helpful, not only in terms of providing funding, but especially in terms of the inputs we received during the Kickers Camp sessions," said the Borobotics founders.
The Venture Kick foundation initiative offers Swiss startups up to CHF 150,000 in seed capital and provides a well-structured entrepreneurial path to building a successful business. Since its launch in 2007, Venture Kick has supported 917 Swiss startup projects with CHF 44.85 million. The financial support, training and networking programs have created 718 companies and 11,362 jobs.
Further information can be found on the Borobotics profile on VentureKick.ch
