A technology platform that uses generative artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline the process of buying property has raised £7.5 mln (€8.6 mln) in a Series A round.
The Orbital Witness fund raise was led by proptech investor Parker89 and joined by LocalGlobe, Outward VC, Seedcamp, Portfolio Ventures, and Realty Corporation.
The platform tackles the legal processes in property transactions - much of which hasn’t changed for over 150 years - through machine learning and AI.
The firm helps lawyers and property professionals grapple with the increasingly complex, labour intensive, and heavily regulated diligence process that traces its roots back to the Victorian era.
This round is expected to enable the team to roll-out their first product aimed at the residential property market.
Will Pearce, who co-founded the business with Ed Boulle in 2018, said: 'A lot of the legal due diligence involved in buying property hasn’t materially changed for 150 years. These processes are weighing down legal experts and burying them in a mountain of paperwork.
'This is also slowing down the process for buyers and making it more complicated than needed. We transform how property transactions are handled by providing an instant picture of key risks a lawyer needs to know about a property, so they can advise their client quickly and with maximum clarity.
'We’ve made great progress building our platform amongst commercial real estate specialists and we couldn’t be more excited to now bring our technology to the residential market.'
The Orbital Witness platform automates the document sourcing phase by identifying data and documents from public sources including the Land Registry and local authorities.
The company then uses the latest generative AI and natural language processing techniques to analyse key documents such as leases and deeds to provide users with a rapid overview of issues, risks or quirks that might affect a property transaction.
It is already used by over 2,000 property lawyers and real estate professionals, including all of the UK’s ‘magic circle’ law firms, as well as by in-house teams across major property developers and insurers, such as the Dominvs Group and Zurich, and infrastructure teams at Tesla.
The platform has powered over 76,000 transactions and saved over 74 million minutes to date, time that legal specialists can instead use on higher value tasks.
The raise brings Orbital Witness’ total funding to £11.5 mln to date and comes off the back of a year in which the company’s revenues doubled.
Paul Hurst, managing director at Parker89, the venture capital firm that led the round, said: 'At Parker89, we find and invest in the teams and technologies that will usher in the future business models and working practices of a real estate transaction.
'Orbital Witness’ vision of automated diligence - combining risk-spotting AI with insurance to enhance efficiency in real estate transactions - fits perfectly into our investment strategy and aligns with the expertise and assets we can offer. We are excited to partner with Will, Ed, and the Orbital Witness team.'
