London-based future of work startup Wazoku has raised £8.5m in a Series B round to support the research and development of its work management platform.
Founded in 2011, Wazoku is an AI-powered platform used by a wide range of organisations such as NASA, Enel, HSBC, and Shell.
The platform facilitates digital communication between workspaces and contains the startup’s suite of products used for tasks such as talent scouting and supply chain management.
The new funding came from Octopus Ventures, along with participation from Calculus Capital.
“In a world in which volatility and complexity are increasing and the nature of work and talent are drastically changing, it is critical that organisations develop the capability and capacity to think and act differently when it comes to change and innovation,” said Rich Bolton of Octopus Ventures.
“We have been impressed with the vision of the Wazoku team to help drive impact and innovation by creating a true operating system for innovation at scale. We back ambitious founders with a bold vision to change the world and are excited to support Wazoku in this next stage of their growth.”
Alongside the Series B round, Wazoku also announced the acquisition of the Danish intelligence platform Mindpool, which provides employee performance insights.
“From a strategic perspective, Wazoku and Mindpool coming together means the two organisations will be even greater than the sum of their parts,” said Soren Holm, director at Mindpool
“There’s just enormous opportunity in supporting the increasing number of organisations shifting towards human-centric tools and platforms.”
In 2020, Wazoku raised £1.25m from the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Calculus Capital.