FireDrone Secures €161,000 Pre-Seed Funding to Advance Heat-Resistant Autonomous Drones
FireDrone, a Swiss deep‑tech robotics start‑up developing heat‑resistant autonomous drones, has secured early funding that will support the company as it pushes toward commercialisation of its next‑generation aerial systems designed for extreme environments. Founded in September 2025 as a spin‑off from the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa), FireDrone is engineering drones capable of operating in temperatures up to 200 °C, a capability that could transform firefighting, industrial inspection and emergency response work where conventional drones fail due to heat, smoke and hazardous conditions.
The company’s first funding milestone came in November 2025, when it received €161,000 (CHF 150,000) through the Swiss early‑stage support programme Venture Kick. This investment marks a crucial pre‑seed boost for the young business, helping FireDrone bridge the gap between research prototype and market‑ready product. Venture Kick’s backing includes both financial support and access to a network of mentors, industry experts and follow‑on funding opportunities, all aimed at accelerating the commercial deployment of Switzerland’s most promising tech innovations.
FireDrone’s core innovation lies in its heat‑resilient drone platform, which integrates advanced thermal insulation, active cooling and autonomous flight control to gather real‑time visual and sensor data from environments where human operators or standard UAVs cannot safely venture. The company’s technology is being developed with applications in high‑temperature industrial inspections — such as furnaces, kilns and energy plants — and public safety operations, including firefighting in burning buildings. By delivering actionable insights without exposing personnel to risk, FireDrone’s systems aim to improve situational awareness, reduce operational downtime and enhance decision‑making in critical scenarios.
According to company filings and reporting, FireDrone’s early funding will be used to strengthen its go‑to‑market strategy by expanding its business development capacity, establishing distribution and maintenance partnerships, advancing product certification, and converting pilot projects into pre‑orders with industrial partners. These steps are essential as the start‑up transitions from prototype testing toward broader commercial adoption across targeted sectors.
The founders, including CEO Fabian Wiesemüller and CTO David Häusermann, bring deep technical expertise from Empa, where the FireDrone concept was conceived within the Laboratory of Sustainability Robotics and the Superinsulation Materials Group. Their combined backgrounds in robotics, materials science and thermal engineering have shaped FireDrone’s unique approach to aerial operations in extreme heat. The company’s design philosophy emphasises reliability, robustness and safety — qualities that are essential for missions where the cost of failure can be measured in human lives and critical infrastructure damage.
FireDrone’s market potential is underscored by the growing global demand for unmanned systems capable of operating in challenging environments. Industrial sectors such as steel, cement, aluminium and waste‑to‑energy production regularly involve high‑temperature processes where traditional inspection methods can be hazardous and costly. Meanwhile, firefighting agencies around the world are increasingly turning to robotics and remote sensing to enhance response effectiveness and protect first responders. FireDrone’s technology, by enabling reliable aerial reconnaissance where others cannot, seeks to address these needs directly.
In addition to the Venture Kick investment, FireDrone’s development has been supported by programmes such as the InnoBooster initiative of the Gebert Rüf Stiftung, which awarded CHF 150,000 earlier in 2025 to support prototype refinement, pilot deployments and groundwork toward commercialisation. These public and private funding streams reflect a broader ecosystem of innovation support aimed at deep‑tech start‑ups tackling high‑impact challenges in safety, industry and environmental sustainability.
As FireDrone progresses through product development and early market engagements, the company is poised to play a leading role in making high‑temperature aerial robotics a viable tool for both emergency services and industrial operators. With early funding secured and technical milestones on the horizon, FireDrone’s focus now turns to scaling operations, establishing long‑term partnerships, and proving the real‑world value of its heat‑resistant drones in sectors where safety and efficiency are paramount.
