Treeswift
Philadelphia, US · Founded 2020 · Delaware corporation · 18 known investors
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Treeswift develops physical AI using robotics and machine learning to assist field crews with grid inspection, vegetation management, and asset documentation. It serves electric utilities, helping their crews collect field data and reduce manual tasks like measuring, counting, and data entry.
Also known as TreeSwift
Founders & leadership
Treeswift was founded in 2020 by Elizabeth Hunter, Steven Chen, and Michael Shomin.
Investors · 18
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Also in the syndicate · 3
Reported raises · per SEC filings
Form D private placements$16.9M disclosed across 2 of 3 rounds · 2021–2023
▶$10.8MraisedSep 2023 · 20 investors · OtherRule 506(b)
- Elizabeth HunterExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Steven ChenExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Michael ShominExecutive Officer, Director
- Offering amount
- $12.7M
- Amount sold
- $10.8M
- Minimum investment
- $1
- First sale
- Aug 2023
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware, 2020
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$6.1MraisedDec 2021 · 28 investors · Other TechnologyRule 506(b)
- Elizabeth HunterExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Steven ChenExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Michael ShominExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Offering amount
- $6.1M
- Amount sold
- $6.1M
- First sale
- Dec 2021
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware, 2020
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
Source: SEC EDGAR Form D. Amounts as filed; amended filings shown once at their latest values.
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Treeswift is a robotics and machine learning company that builds autonomous drone systems for collecting data in environments that are difficult to survey manually. Its core product, SwiftCruise, uses a swarm of drones that fly autonomously beneath the forest canopy, combining cameras, LiDAR sensors and machine learning algorithms to capture individual tree metrics. The resulting data and analyses are applied to carbon capture estimation, timber value appraisal, fire mitigation, biomass understory assessment, deforestation monitoring, growth forecasting and general forest management.
The company has since described its work in broader infrastructure terms, supporting customers with infrastructure inspections, vegetation management, construction planning, wildfire mitigation and storm response. Treeswift was founded by alumni of the University of Pennsylvania GRASP Laboratory and Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute, and its advisers have included Dr. Harold Burkhard of Virginia Tech's Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation and Dr. Vijay Kumar, Nemirovsky Family Dean of Engineering at Penn.
Founding story
Treeswift was founded in 2020 as a spin-off from the University of Pennsylvania's General Robotics, Automation, Sensing & Perception (GRASP) Lab. Its co-founders are Steven Chen (CEO), Elizabeth Hunter (COO), Michael Shomin (CTO) and Vaibhav Arcot (senior software engineer). The founding team comprises alumni of the GRASP Laboratory and of the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.
Business model
Treeswift provides forest and infrastructure stakeholders with precision data and analyses derived from its autonomous drone fleets, delivering metrics and reporting rather than selling hardware alone.
Traction
By the time of its seed round Treeswift reported deployments underway with Molpus Woodlands Group, Superior Pine Products Company and Weyerhaeuser Company for timber quantity and carbon volume estimation, with a Molpus executive citing the system's accuracy in classifying trees into product classes and flagging stem quality issues.
Latest developments
In July 2026 Treeswift signed a four-year lease for 7,487 square feet on the entire 11th floor of 256 West 38th Street in Manhattan at an asking rent of $39 per square foot, with occupancy planned for August, described as an expansion of its New York City operations.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
Treeswift operates in drone-based forestry and infrastructure data collection, and has more recently been characterized in commercial real estate coverage as an artificial intelligence-driven infrastructure technology company.
The company positions under-canopy autonomous flight and sensor fusion as an alternative to manual timber cruising, in which surveyors gather data on foot with tape measures and clipboards; Treeswift claims SwiftCruise collects data roughly ten times faster than such conventional methods and supports more transparent and verifiable measurement.
Technology
Treeswift's systems fly drones autonomously under the forest canopy, where conventional aerial and satellite methods have limited visibility. The drones carry cameras and LiDAR sensors, and machine learning and robotic algorithms extract individual tree metrics from the sensor data, including allocation of trees into product classes and identification of stem quality issues affecting value.
Go-to-market
Timberland owners and managers, forest investment and natural resource companies, and organizations responsible for infrastructure inspection, vegetation management, construction planning, wildfire mitigation and storm response. Named engagements include Molpus Woodlands Group, which manages roughly 1.7 million acres of timberland investments across 17 states, Superior Pine Products Company and Weyerhaeuser Company.
Geography
Headquartered in Philadelphia, with New York City operations expanding into a new Midtown Manhattan office at 256 West 38th Street as of August 2026. Customer deployments have included timberland holdings managed from Mississippi and spanning multiple U.S. states.
History
Founded in 2020 out of Penn's GRASP Lab, Treeswift developed the SwiftCruise drone-based forest data collection system and by 2022 had closed a $4.8 million seed round led by Pathbreaker Ventures, bringing cumulative funding to $6.4 million. At that time it was planning and running deployments with timberland managers including Molpus Woodlands Group, Superior Pine Products Company and Weyerhaeuser Company. In July 2026 the company signed a four-year, 7,487-square-foot lease at 256 West 38th Street in Midtown Manhattan, expanding its New York City operations while keeping a Philadelphia office.
Compiled by commissioned research from 4 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Competitors · 2
by search overlap
Companies competing with Treeswift for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Timeline · 3
launches, deals, and filingsTreeswift signed a four-year lease for the entire 11th floor (7,487 square feet) at 256 West 38th Street in Midtown Manhattan, with asking rent of $39 per square foot, expanding its New York City operations; move-in planned for August. The company also maintains a Philadelphia office.
Seed round of $4.8 million led by Pathbreaker Ventures with 13 other participating investors, bringing total funding to $6.4 million.
$4.8M source ↗
Treeswift was planning and running deployments with Molpus Woodlands Group, Superior Pine Products Company and Weyerhaeuser Company to estimate forest timber quantity and carbon volumes.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
Legal entities · 1
corporate structureIn the news
▸Research sources · 4
primary sources listed
- Treeswift raises $4.8M seed round | Pennovation Workspennovation.upenn.edu · web
4 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Treeswift do?
- Treeswift uses autonomous drones and machine learning to collect under-canopy forest and infrastructure field data.
- Who founded Treeswift?
- Treeswift was founded by Elizabeth Hunter, Steven Chen, Michael Shomin in 2020.
- Who are Treeswift's investors?
- Treeswift's investors include Contour Venture Partners, Convective Capital, Crosslink Capital, Dorm Room, Humba Ventures, Inspired Capital, Pathbreaker Ventures, Yes VC and 7 more.
- How much funding has Treeswift raised?
- Treeswift has disclosed $16.9M raised across 2 of its 3 known rounds.
- Where is Treeswift headquartered?
- Treeswift is headquartered in Philadelphia, US.