Getting a splash of cash

California-based water analytics platform developer Ketos has raised $18m in venture capital, in a round led by Motley Fool Ventures.

The company, which counts the Southern Nevada Water Authority and Las Vegas Valley Water District among its clients, uses its ‘Shield Fabric’ sensors to monitor water networks, and artificial intelligence – to predict when maintenance is required.

Citi and Illuminated Funds Group also invested, joining existing backers Ajax Strategies, Better Ventures, Broadway Angels, Plum Valley Ventures and Rethink Impact. The investment brought the company’s total funding to date to $30m.

Drink deep

Tracking metrics like selenium, arsenic, chromium, manganese, iron, and nitrates, Ketos claims its system is able to predict issues related to chemical treatment, public health, process control, food processing, and effluent discharge compliance.

“Creating one of the largest centralized data lakes of water quality insights – with information on heavy-metal toxins, coupled with location-based mapping and potential contamination sources – the potential for what machine learning and artificial intelligence can achieve is limitless,” Meena Sankaran, founder and CEO of Ketos, said.

“Ketos can potentially prevent a disease outbreak or provide citizens visibility on a global scale, which could impact their own public health.”

The company correlates data from contamination sources and water sources like well water, surface water, and watersheds, to model contamination within a ZIP code. Ketos’ Wave Fabric system can be put into water systems, automatically shutting off flow if leaks are detected.

The startup claims that it has collected over 13 million data points in the US alone, and has more than 130 deployments across countries including India, Mexico, and Canada. It says its customers have been able to reduce the costs of water sample testing by 90 percent.

Last year, Ketos entered into a strategic partnership with agtech company Dramm Corporation and water treatment solution provider Water Engineering to install systems across North America.

“Ketos enables large commercial and industrial clients, now including vertical farms, to make more proactive and informed decisions about their water-intensive operations,” Heidi Patel, managing partner of Rethink Impact, said.

“By addressing both water usage and water safety at increasing scale, Ketos is creating a positive impact for businesses and the planet.”