Pepper IoT receives $8.5 million in Series B financing

Pepper – no, not the robot – has received $8.5 million in series B funding to help launch several consumer Internet of Things (IoT) products.

The Kansas City-based startup enlisted Leawood Ventures, the KCRIse Fund, and Royal Street Ventures for the capital, joining the list of current investors, OpenAir Equity Partners and Comporium Communications.

The fund will support the launch of several products including the Pepper OS, which will be launched through global mass market channels in the coming months. The Pepper OS will power a new generation of IoT and connected home services, the company notes.

By introducing the new Pepper IoT brand and platform, the company will serve the IoT and connected home market in two ways, namely Pepper IoT Enterprise and Powered by Pepper.

Pepper IoT Enterprise has partners from different sectors such as insurance carriers, utilities, telecom providers, and helps them in the development of services that incorporate strategic IoT and connected home solutions, while Powered by Pepper partners are those who desire to leverage IoT technologies to grow their business but want to avoid the overhead of software development sourcing, operations, and maintenance.

Mark Rolston, founder of argodesign and chief creative officer of Pepper, said: “Pepper is a platform for our partners to build great IoT products and services in the same way that iOS and Android enable a world of complex mobile solutions and in-demand content. First and foremost, we designed Pepper around a beautiful and flexible user experience, because we want people to feel that their ‘Powered by Pepper’ products fit seamlessly and intuitively into their lives. It’s how technology should be, and we’re confident it will keep our customers coming back for more.”