AVIAN Raises $2.6M to Stop Fires with Always-On AI

Jan de Vries · 2026-05-20

Zurich-based industrial AI startup AVIAN just raised $2.6 million in a pre-Seed round led by Founderful. The company's always-on thermal monitoring system is designed to prevent fires in high-risk industrial environments like sawmills, recycling plants, and chemical facilities. But here's the kicker: AVIAN was profitable and bootstrapped for two years before taking any outside money. The founders wanted to build something operators actually trust before scaling. Now, with fresh capital, they're expanding beyond wood products into recycling, chemical processing, oil and gas, and maritime. They're on track to hit $1 million in annual recurring revenue by 2026. "Most operators don't need another camera. At 3 a.m., they need to know that a bearing is running hot before it ignites the dust around it," said Drew Hanover, co-founder and CTO. "We spent zero minutes on a deck." ### How AVIAN's AI Thermal Monitoring Works Founded in 2023 by Hanover and Thomas Laengle, AVIAN deploys off-the-shelf AI systems that predict and prevent fire disasters. The platform uses infrared cameras to continuously monitor critical components like motors, bearings, conveyors, presses, and electrical cabinets. It learns what "normal" looks like for each specific plant, then focuses on drift—the early heat patterns that show up before failure. - Smart alarms filter out routine heat sources so teams aren't chasing noise - Alerts go to the right people with enough lead time to intervene - Automated predictive maintenance reports are generated regularly - 24/7 human support backs the platform Each alarm event is analyzed and fed back into the models, improving detection across the entire fleet. New sites benefit from insights AVIAN has already gathered in the field.  ### The Problem with Old-School Thermal Safety Industrial operators across Europe and North America face a challenge they can't solve with inspections alone. Fine dust, friction, electrical issues, and aging machinery are pushing fire and downtime risk into territory insurers won't underwrite at viable premiums. Sites deemed insurable five years ago are now considered too risky. The old approach? A technician walking the floor with a handheld camera once a quarter. That method misses the critical window: the hours when a component starts running hot before it fails. Most thermal vendors just sell the hardware and leave operators to handle setup, monitoring, and escalation themselves. AVIAN takes a different approach. The sensor is one piece of solving the problem, not the product itself. Customers are typically up and running in minutes, not months. ### Real Results and Customer Wins In the past two years, AVIAN has saved over $50 million by preventing fires and equipment failures. The system is currently active at about 50 sites across 9 countries. - Kamps Pallet cut its yearly insurance costs by 10% at its Dillwyn sawmill after implementing AVIAN's system - Sierra Pacific Industries has prevented more than 24 hours of downtime ### Why This Matters for US Industrial Operators US factories face the same pressures: rising insurance costs, aging equipment, and tighter safety regulations. AVIAN's always-on monitoring offers a way to reduce risk and lower premiums without adding complexity. It's a practical tool for plant managers who need to keep operations running smoothly and safely. With $2.6 million in new funding and a proven track record, AVIAN is poised to scale its solution across more industries and geographies. For operators tired of fighting fires—literally and figuratively—this is a system worth watching.