BeeX Raises USD 7.7 Million to Expand Underwater Drone Operations

BeeX has closed a USD 7.7 million Series A funding round to expand its autonomous underwater drone fleet and extend its operational reach across international commercial and defense markets.

The investment round was led by Monk’s Hill Ventures, with participation from ShipsFocus, OCTAVE Capital, NUS Technology Holdings, and SEEDS, an arm of SG Growth Capital. BeeX has developed adaptive autonomous capabilities for high-variability underwater environments, supporting commercial infrastructure and defense applications.

Founded by Grace Chia and Goh Eng Wei, who bring deep expertise in underwater robotics and defense, BeeX was established to deliver reliable, sustainable subsea autonomy. Its flagship autonomous underwater drone is A.IKANBILIS, while the company’s autonomous inspection platform provides a cost-efficient alternative to conventional inspection methods.

Grace Chia, CEO of BeeX, commented, “Closing this round marks an important milestone for BeeX. Our focus remains on delivering reliable autonomous capabilities that solve real operational challenges underwater. This funding allows us to expand our reach and build more technological capabilities, to meet the growing demand from customers across commercial and defense markets.”

Kuo-Yi Lim, Managing Partner at Monk’s Hill Ventures, added, “The convergence of increasing off-shore infrastructure asset integrity requirements and defense modernization is creating a generational opportunity in underwater robotics that we believe BeeX is poised to capture, and we’re excited to partner with them as they continue to scale.”

In commercial markets, BeeX serves the offshore wind industry, oil and gas operators, subsea cable owners, and coastal infrastructure managers and has deployed its technology for leading offshore asset owners across APAC and Europe. These customers face inspection requirements that are regulated, recurring, and expensive to service using conventional methods.

At the same time, navies and coast guards are increasingly adopting autonomous systems for base protection, clearance diving, and mine countermeasures. Singapore’s Ministry of Defence has partnered with BeeX under a multimillion-dollar contract for national security applications, which the company said validates both its technology and its position within the global defense ecosystem.

Chye Poh Chua, CEO of ShipsFocus Ventures, stated, “ShipsFocus is very pleased to continue supporting BeeX in this next stage of growth. The BeeX team has consistently demonstrated an ability to tackle complex operational challenges and translate deep technology into real customer value. For us, this is the clearest signal of the company’s potential: not simply improving existing workflows, but enabling entirely new ways of operating.”

May Liew, CEO of OCTAVE Capital, said, “BeeX represents the type of scalable ocean innovation that is needed to build a more sustainable and resilient maritime sector. At OCTAVE Capital, we invest in companies that combine strong commercial potential with measurable environmental and social impact, and BeeX embodies both. Its autonomous underwater systems help improve safety, reduce operational costs, and lower emissions by minimising the need for divers and support vessels.”

Christine Giam, Partner at SG Growth Capital, added, “Singapore’s maritime ecosystem and strengths in engineering provided a conducive testbed for BeeX to develop and deploy autonomous underwater vehicles to inspect, monitor, and protect critical underwater infrastructure. We are pleased to support BeeX’s global ambition to bring industrial-grade solutions to enhance the safety, resilience, and efficiency of underwater operations from Singapore to global markets.”