Aug 4, 2025

Podcast: Alex Hawkinson on Dealmakers — Betting Big on Physical AI

What does it take to build a company that doesn’t follow the typical SaaS playbook? On the Dealmakers podcast, BrightAI founder and CEO Alex Hawkinson talks with host Alejandro Cremades about scaling real-world AI, selling SmartThings to Samsung, and why the physical world deserves just as much innovation as the digital one.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here.

Aug 4, 2025

Podcast: BrightAI’s Vision for AI in the Physical World

On the latest episode of Inspired, Alexa von Tobel interviews BrightAI CEO Alex Hawkinson about building companies that reshape how the world works—from SmartThings to BrightAI, and his mission to bring Physical AI to essential industries like HVAC, utilities, and more.

They discuss why Inspired Capital chose to invest, what lies ahead for BrightAI, and, in a more personal moment, how Alex handles stress, stays grounded, and the kindest thing anyone’s ever done for him.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here

Jul 18, 2025

Press Release: BrightAI Raises $51M Series A to Scale Physical AI

BrightAI has raised $51 million in Series A funding to bring real-time intelligence and automation to the physical infrastructure that powers modern life. The round was co-led by Khosla Ventures and Inspired Capital, with participation from BoxGroup, Marlinspike, VSC Ventures, Rsquared VC, Cooley LLP, and others.

Full press release follows below.

Press Release

BrightAI Raises $51M from Khosla Ventures and Inspired Capital to Bring Physical AI to the World’s Essential Services

BrightAI adds $51 million in Series A funding from leading infrastructure and AI investors, bringing total funding to $78 million.
Backed by leaders from SmartThings, Rivian, and Microsoft, BrightAI equips frontline teams to outpace labor shortages, aging infrastructure, and climate risk.
A new San Francisco headquarters will support expansion into new industries, customers, and hires across engineering and operations.

San Francisco, CA, United States – WEBWIRE – Friday, July 18, 2025

BrightAI, the company bringing AI into the physical world to power smarter, more resilient infrastructure, today announced a $51 million Series A funding round co-led by Khosla Ventures and Inspired Capital, with participation from BoxGroup, Marlinspike, VSC Ventures, Rsquared VC, Cooley LLP and other strategic investors with deep operational experience across essential sectors like water, energy, and industrial infrastructure. Upfront Ventures led BrightAI’s Seed round, and this new capital brings BrightAI’s total funding to $78 million.

While AI has rapidly transformed the digital world, the physical infrastructure that keeps it all running—power grids, water pipelines, industrial systems—has been left behind. These essential networks are strained by aging assets, climate volatility, and deepening labor shortages. In the U.S. alone, pipeline leaks waste over 6 billion gallons of treated water every day—enough to supply 15 million homes—while power outages cost the economy more than $150 billion annually and equipment failures add another $50 billion in industrial downtime.

BrightAI was founded in 2019 with a bold mission: to bring AI into the physical world. Led by CEO and founder Alex Hawkinson, who previously founded SmartThings, BrightAI is replacing reactive inspections and manual maintenance with intelligent, always-on systems. The platform empowers field teams to anticipate and prevent failures before they happen, transforming the fundamental approach to infrastructure management for the first time since the Roman era.

AI will not only transform the digital world but our physical world as well,” said Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures. “BrightAI is using AI to monitor and maintain aging infrastructure, from power grids to pipelines and more, securing key assets for our future.

Despite touching the most essential parts of daily life, these systems are still monitored manually, with sparse data and infrequent inspections. Operators are often in the dark until something breaks—leading to costly, last-minute interventions. Risks like power outages or burst pipes remain difficult to predict and even harder to fix.

BrightAI gives field teams something they’ve never had before: true observability. While most AI systems are running out of new data to learn from, BrightAI is just getting started—unlocking billions of previously untapped signals from the physical world and turning them into real-time, actionable insights. With its platform, Stateful, teams gain always-on visibility into even the most remote physical assets.

BrightAI has solved a problem that’s lingered for decades—manual, reactive maintenance that leaves operators blind until critical failures occur,” said Alexa von Tobel, Managing Partner at Inspired Capital. “By deploying intelligent systems that can see, interpret, and act in real time, BrightAI brings the clarity and control these industries have long needed. This is real, high-impact innovation—built for the physical world.

Deployed across 50,000+ locations, BrightAI is building a dynamic, ever-expanding knowledge graph of the physical world. Its technology is embedded directly into the built environment—using sensors, drones, and wearables to continuously monitor asset health and deliver real-time, actionable insights. Field teams know exactly what to do before small anomalies become costly failures.

By transforming inspections and maintenance, BrightAI helps customers boost productivity, improve service quality, enhance worker safety, and navigate ongoing labor shortages. Here’s what that looks like in practice:

No more flashlight-and-clipboard patrols: BrightAI’s sensors and edge-AI monitor assets with expert insight around the clock, surfacing issues before crews ever step into the field.
No more repetitive, risky work: AI-powered robots take on dirty and dangerous inspection tasks, reducing safety hazards and freeing human teams to focus on skilled, high-value jobs.
No more steep learning curves: Wearables and mobile tools deliver real-time AI guidance, equipping new technicians with the know-how of a seasoned expert—on day one.

For decades, the physical world has lacked real-time awareness—teams have been forced to operate reactively, without the visibility they need,” said Alex Hawkinson, Founder and CEO of BrightAI. “We designed BrightAI to close that gap by continuously capturing and translating real-world signals into actionable intelligence. When you can truly observe what’s happening, you can get ahead of problems rather than chase them. That shift isn’t incremental—it’s foundational. And with the backing of Khosla Ventures and Inspired Capital, we’re scaling that transformation across the essential services that the world depends on.

This shift is already playing out across the real world. BrightAI has achieved product-market fit in sectors like power, water, pest control, HVAC, and manufacturing—surpassing $100 million in revenue. Its Stateful platform is built to learn and operate in any physical environment, and with fresh funding and an expanded leadership team, the company is scaling into new markets and accelerating commercial deployments. A new San Francisco headquarters opens next quarter, with plans to hire 50+ new team members over the coming year. The next chapter is about unlocking physical AI at global scale—to transform how the world’s essential systems are seen, understood, and managed.

To learn more, please visit: https://www.bright.ai/

About BrightAI
BrightAI is transforming essential services with Physical AI—real-world intelligence that drives proactive, data-driven operations. Built on the Stateful platform, BrightAI empowers operators of critical infrastructure to collect and connect sensor data in real time, uncover hidden insights, and make smarter decisions. From predictive diagnostics and autonomous robotics to digital twins and AI-enabled workflows, BrightAI solutions serve industries including water, power, gas compression, pest control, HVAC, and manufacturing. By turning complex physical signals into actionable intelligence, BrightAI is redefining how essential services are delivered and sustained.

Original press release available on WEBWIRE.

Jun 11, 2025

Press Release: BrightAI Surpasses $100M and Expands Leadership Team

BrightAI is accelerating growth with a major leadership expansion, appointing new executives to scale operations and drive deployment of its edge AI platform, Stateful. As part of this leadership team growth, BrightAI has surpassed $100 million in revenue and welcomed Gerald Choung as Chief Revenue Officer, alongside two senior engineering leaders: Phil Constantinou and John Dring. This marks a significant milestone in BrightAI’s evolution as a leading AI infrastructure company.

Full press release follows below.

Press Release

BrightAI Surpasses $100M in Revenue and Taps Microsoft, Evernote, and Intel Veterans as Chief Revenue Officer and SVPs of Engineering

BrightAI adds senior leaders across revenue, cloud, and hardware engineering to drive operational scale and accelerate deployment of its Stateful platform.
A new San Francisco headquarters will support West Coast expansion and continued hiring from leading companies across logistics, robotics, and enterprise technology.
With this leadership expansion, BrightAI transitions from core development to commercial scale, deepening market reach and preparing for expanded field deployment.

San Francisco, California, United States – WEBWIRE – June 5, 2025

BrightAI, the company bringing AI into the physical world to power smarter, more resilient infrastructure, today announced a major expansion of its leadership team as it surpasses $100 million in lifetime revenue and enters a new phase focused on commercial scale and platform deployment.

At the center of this momentum is the appointment of Gerald Choung as Chief Revenue Officer. Phil Constantinou has been appointed as SVP of Cloud and Mobile Engineering, and John Dring as SVP of Hardware and Firmware Engineering—two seasoned leaders focused on scaling BrightAI’s platform and operations. Their arrival builds on a leadership foundation anchored by CTO Kiran Bharwani, formerly of Rivian and Caterpillar, who leads the company’s technical vision and architecture.

Choung’s appointment signals BrightAI’s deep commitment to building the commercial and operational capacity required to meet accelerating demand. With more than two decades of experience building and leading revenue organizations across enterprise software, IoT, and infrastructure, Choung will lead all go-to-market functions—including sales, marketing, and partnerships—as BrightAI enters a new phase of growth and deployment. His background includes leadership roles at Microsoft, Qualcomm, ESET, and most recently, as CRO at Platform Science and ActiveState, where he consistently unlocked new markets, scaled high-performing teams, and delivered durable growth.

I joined BrightAI to tackle the operational challenges that have held essential industries back for decades,” said Gerald Choung, Chief Revenue Officer at BrightAI. “These sectors haven’t had the benefit of modern, field-ready technology—and BrightAI is uniquely positioned to change that by improving efficiency, increasing quality and resilience, and delivering long-term value at scale.

As BrightAI builds on this commercial foundation, its technical leadership continues to expand in lockstep. Constantinou and Dring bring complementary expertise in software, hardware, and systems engineering. At Evernote, Constantinou helped scale the platform to over 200 million users. He later led mobile and cloud efforts for biosensor platforms in health tech. At BrightAI, Constantinou will lead development of the mobile and cloud layers of Stateful, an AI platform that fuses edge sensors, autonomous robotics, and multimodal functional models to modernize infrastructure and bring real-time field intelligence to the edge. His focus will be on delivering intuitive tools that connect frontline teams to real-time, context-rich digital twins.

Dring complements this work with deep expertise in embedded systems and connected devices. With senior roles at Intel and VitalConnect, he has led architecture and product development across hardware and cloud. At Intel, he helped build one of the first WiMAX chipsets, and at VitalConnect, he oversaw development of the HealthPatch wearable system. As SVP of Engineering, he will lead hardware and systems engineering for BrightAI’s autonomous robotics and wearables, developing intelligent systems that enhance precision, safety, and operational uptime.

The world runs on physical systems—power lines, pipelines, equipment in the field—and they’ve been left behind by traditional software,” said Alex Hawkinson, Founder and CEO of BrightAI. “At BrightAI, we’re building a new class of AI that lives where the work happens. That takes a different caliber of leadership. Gerald knows how to scale with precision. Phil and John know how to build systems that bridge cloud and edge. Together with Kiran, they form the team that will take BrightAI from breakthrough to backbone.

BrightAI is also expanding its physical footprint, opening a new headquarters in San Francisco to support continued growth. The office will open next quarter and initially house nearly two dozen employees, with plans to hire more than 50 additional team members in the next year. These appointments and investments reflect BrightAI’s readiness for expanded field deployment, continued platform evolution, and deepening industry engagement.

BrightAI has also attracted top contributors from leading companies across technology, logistics, and robotics—including TensorIoT, Humane, Google, Roku, Canoo, Ware2Go, Frore System, AvaSure, Brain Corp, and Offworld.

The future of AI is physical—and we’re building the systems that keep the real world running,” said Golda Hartman, Chief People Officer at BrightAI. “BrightAI is bringing together top talent from software, infrastructure, and embedded systems to modernize the essential services the world depends on every day. This is a purpose-built team transforming how critical systems are designed, deployed, and sustained.

Original press release available on WEBWIRE.

Mar 14, 2025

Podcast: Alex Hawkinson on Tech Seeking Human

BrightAI CEO and Founder Alex Hawkinson recently joined the Tech Seeking Human podcast to discuss how AI, IoT, and automation are modernizing infrastructure with AI. The episode explores how these technologies are transforming legacy systems across sectors like utilities, water, and manufacturing.

Alex shares how building SmartThings shaped his vision for BrightAI. That same vision is now helping companies modernize field operations with real-time intelligence, predictive analytics, and autonomous systems.

He explains how BrightAI’s platform helps companies:

Detect and resolve issues before failures occur
Boost workforce productivity and reduce manual processes
Shift from reactive maintenance to proactive, AI-powered operations

If you’re interested in infrastructure technology, AI in the field, or scaling operations, this episode is a must-watch.

🔗 Watch the full episode

Mar 12, 2025

BrightAI CEO Alex Hawkinson on SXSW Panel: Modernizing Dirty Jobs to Tackle Climate Change

BrightAI CEO and Founder Alex Hawkinson recently joined the “Dirty Jobs and a Warming Planet” panel at SXSW. He spoke alongside leaders in tech and sustainability to explore how AI in physical industries can address climate change and modernize critical infrastructure.

Alex highlighted the untapped potential of field operations in sectors like power, water, and HVAC. These industries make up 85% of the global economy. He explained how BrightAI equips field teams with real-time insights to improve decision-making, increase productivity, and build more sustainable systems.

A standout moment came when Alex asked:

If you could understand the state of the world in real-time—like a digital twin of the physical world—what would that unlock for you?

🎧 Listen to the full panel discussion here

Mar 4, 2025

Media: BrightAI CEO Alex Hawkinson on Physical AI and Infrastructure Innovation (Unite.AI)

How do you rethink infrastructure from the ground up?

For BrightAI CEO and Founder Alex Hawkinson, it started with a realization: the same intelligence that revolutionized smart homes could do far more than automate living spaces—it could transform the physical world.

In a recent interview with Unite.AI editor Antoine Tardif, Alex shares his journey from founding SmartThings to leading BrightAI, the emergence of Physical AI, and the urgent need for industries like water, power, and transportation to shift from reactive maintenance to proactive operations.

💡 Key takeaway: Infrastructure industries don’t suffer from a lack of data—they lack the tools to make it actionable for the people on the ground.

Read the full interview on Unite.AI

Feb 13, 2025

Podcast: Alex Hawkinson on The Product Market Fit Show

BrightAI’s CEO and Founder, Alex Hawkinson, recently appeared on The Product Market Fit Show to discuss how Stateful OS is transforming infrastructure operations. He explains how BrightAI helps industries shift from reactive maintenance to AI-powered, proactive solutions.

In this episode, Alex breaks down how he bootstrapped BrightAI to $80 million in revenue across just seven enterprise customers, raised a $15 million Series Seed, and secured multiple seven-figure deals. He also shares lessons from a previous startup exit—and why impact, not just scale, drives meaningful innovation in infrastructure.

🎧 Listen to the full discussion here

May 17, 2022

Podcast: Alex Hawkinson on Stacey on IoT Discussing AIoT Innovation

BrightAI co-founder Alex Hawkinson joined the popular Stacey on IoT podcast to discuss how AIoT is transforming physical industries.

In the episode, Alex explains how BrightAI’s turnkey platform helps legacy businesses unlock innovation, gain real-time insights, and deliver more value to customers. He also shares why these AIoT advances aren’t just profitable—they’re good for society, too.

Listen to the full episode here.

Apr 26, 2022

Founder’s Thoughts: Alex Hawkinson on Unlocking Business Transformation with AIoT

The next major tech revolution has arrived, and BrightAI is leading the charge.

Major advances in Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things have finally enabled these breakthrough technologies to work together. BrightAI has merged AI and IoT to create AIoT, and it’s already disrupting traditional businesses across many legacy industries.

We talked to BrightAI co-founder Alex Hawkinson about how AIoT will usher in transformations that change complex physical businesses forever.

How is AIoT the most exciting technology wave of our time?

AIoT is basically the start of a new industrial revolution. We’re at a point where multiple large technology waves are maturing in a way that’s really profound.

IoT has developed to where better-than-human sensing can now monitor and control physical environments. Couple that with deep learning and AI, and we’re able to bring intelligence to physical spaces in a way that was simply not possible before.

That’s what makes AIoT so powerful. We can now reach into these large enterprises that were previously untouched by technology and unlock huge opportunities for growth. We can make products and services better in every facet of the economy, and we can uncover insights that are great for the world. AIoT is making the world itself smarter.

Tell us about the unique platform BrightAI is building?

BrightAI is creating a breakthrough platform that allows companies to get in front of problems before they arise. This really lets businesses stand out and become the best version of themselves.

Take our HVAC client, for example. A hot day would come in the summer, and all their systems would break. They could barely service their customers because they were so busy fixing all these broken machines.

Now, using the BrightAI platform, they can predict issues in advance. So instead of being forced to react to a crisis, they can proactively prevent system shutdowns. They can route their best workers to the right spot, at the right time, with the right parts. That way, they make sure their customers stay comfortable—and happy. And since their best workers aren’t overwhelmed with crises, they are available to actually pick up new customers and grow their business.

So AIoT moved them from being a reactive business that’s always problem solving, to a completely proactive business. Before, they saw themselves as fixing broken HVACs. Now, they see themselves as delivering comfort as a service.

Why haven’t traditional industries been able to employ more tech solutions until now?

One of the things that’s so challenging about building AIoT platforms is that all of these technology layers have to work together. For traditional businesses, it’s enormously difficult to just hire a mobile developer, let alone an AI developer. So in the past, there were just too many barriers for these traditional industries to adopt tech solutions.

BrightAI has brought together the best technologists in the world to build out custom platforms with better-than-human sensing—so businesses can “see” what’s happening in complex physical spaces with far flung operations. Traditional companies now have access to a turnkey platform that can transform their business.

When we first begin to work with our customers, they often imagine that this will take years to unfold. So many of these traditional industries are used to working at a pace that evolves over decades. But BrightAI has brought some of the best experts in the world together with our platform, so we’ve been able to unlock value in a matter of months. We can make these improvements without disrupting day-to-day operations, so our clients never see a dip in profitability. They only see the upward opportunities around these technologies.

How does BrightAI unlock unimagined potential when working with a business?

The range of ways we can unlock unimagined potential for growth and social good in the world constantly surprises us. So often, we have an initial conception of how these technologies will transform a business. But as we begin to make individual parts of a business more intelligent, we find so many additional opportunities to profoundly improve a company’s ability to provide better products and services—and they’ve barely been tapped.

There are enormous opportunities for sensing, predicting, and making better decisions about every facet of operating a business. We see opportunities for massive revenue growth by improving the ability to price, personalize and deliver a wonderful product or service to customers. We see opportunities to predict issues in advance, so problems can be solved before they even become an issue. We see opportunities to efficiently plan CapEx, and to attract better workers.

So really, AIoT impacts every aspect of businesses. It creates momentum with customers. It creates momentum with employees. It creates momentum with investors. Because it unlocks a company’s true potential, I believe it’s going to penetrate every industry and every space in the world. It will radically change how businesses across all industries operate.

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