Manna, an Irish deep tech scale-up and member of the EIC Scaling Club Smart Mobility market sector, may have the key to unlocking last-mile drone deliveries – an industry that has struggled to find its footing for over a decade. This ambitious startup is not only developing autonomous flying robots that promise to make suburban deliveries faster, more affordable, and environmentally friendly, but also finding success in navigating the complex regulatory landscape to put the technology in the air. 

Founded five years ago, Manna has quickly established itself as a world leader in drone delivery, particularly in achieving economic viability. The company has been delivering to customers' houses for over three years, starting in Ireland and expanding to the United States and soon to Finland.

Bobby Healy, CEO and founder of Manna, summarizes his company's ambition: 

“We aim to make lightning-fast deliveries in suburbs affordable, green, and safe. Our goal is to replace road-based delivery, currently done with petrol cars, motorbikes, and scooters, with flying robots”.

Pioneering autonomous drone delivery 

Manna's approach addresses significant challenges in the current delivery market. There are over 5 billion food deliveries annually from the top four companies and the total market size is about 16 billion deliveries when including self-fulfilled orders, says Healy.

“We've built our own aircraft design and the entire software stack,” Healy explains. “Our solution allows one of our operators to manage 20 aircraft simultaneously, making it a truly scalable and autonomous system.”

This level of autonomy and efficiency has led to a crucial milestone: every Manna flight is now profitable, achieving positive unit economics – a feat unmatched in the industry.

Manna's success is built on a foundation of deep expertise and experience. The company boasts a team of 120 people, many of whom have worked with Healy in his previous ventures, the last of which was a $300M ARR business. 

“We have some of the best software engineers in the world, top-tier mechanical, electrical, and aeronautical engineers, and experts in regulatory affairs,” Healy notes. For instance, the company's chief engineer brings several million flight hours of experience with his aircraft designs, underlining the depth of aviation expertise within the team.

Overcoming regulatory barriers

One of Manna's key achievements has been its success in navigating the complex regulatory environment surrounding drone operations. When the company started five years ago, there were no regulations to support their vision. However, Manna proactively developed processes that aligned with general aviation expectations, positioning themselves as both a regulated aircraft manufacturer and even a small cargo airline.

“Getting regulatory permissions to fly in a properly autonomous way, with no human oversight required, is incredibly complex,” Healy acknowledges. “It's a combination of regulatory technology and process that we've managed to navigate successfully.”

Manna's forward-thinking approach paid off when the EU introduced its U-space regulations, which were signed into law in early 2023. These regulations provided the legal framework for Manna's operations, and thanks to their preparation, the company was ready to capitalize on the opportunity. Healy states: 

“We were the first company in the world to have a European-wide license to operate.” 

The company has also made strides in the United States, partnering with the FAA and NASA. In a recent project in Dallas, Manna demonstrated the world's first fully autonomous airspace deconfliction with another drone delivery program operated by Google. This showcase of technology and regulatory compliance positions Manna at the forefront of integrating drone delivery into existing airspace systems. 

Today, Manna has completed over 180,000 flights and has raised over $40 million in funding. To put that into context, their competitors are Google and Amazon, and another comparable company raised $950 million. Yet, despite a leaner warchest, Manna finds itself at the forefront of the industry, succeeding where others have been failing for years. 

Kicking off the revenue growth phase & EIC Scaling Club's role 

Looking ahead, Manna plans to scale across 20 European locations over the next 12 months, marking the start of their revenue growth phase. “We've focused on getting the unit economics right and the product right. Now, we're ready to scale revenue,” Healy states, highlighting that the company is currently fundraising. 

Manna joined the EIC Scaling Club to leverage its network and resources as they transition from a deep tech focus to this growth phase. Healy explains, “As we start the growth journey, it's time to help the team grow and learn from comparative companies and comparative processes. The EIC Scaling Club provides a great network of people and educators to turbo-boost our team."

As Manna continues to develop its drone delivery technology, it stands poised to make a significant impact on the logistics industry. With its innovative approach, experienced team, and support from the EIC Scaling Club, Manna is well-positioned to become a global leader in the next generation of delivery solutions.

About the EIC Scaling Club

The EIC Scaling Club is a curated community where 120+ European deep tech scale-ups with the potential to build world-class businesses and solve major global challenges come together with investors, corporate innovators and other industry stakeholders to spur growth.

The top 120+ European deep tech companies will be carefully selected from a pool of high-growth scale-ups that have benefitted from EIC financial schemes, other European and national innovation programmes, and beyond.

The EIC Scaling Club is an EIC-funded initiative run in partnership by Tech Tour, Bpifrance (EuroQuity), Hello Tomorrow, Tech.eu (Webrazzi), EurA and IESE Business School.

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