A long conference table in front of a large wall of books. Just stirring coffee cups interrupts absolute peace while a contract or certificate is being read out. Normally, notary appointments are exactly the same — even with activelaw.
But everything was different when the tech start-up iotis was certified: Our notary Dr. Christoph Wolter met the participating investors and company founders in the largest possible “office” in Hanover: the HDI Arena.
Big round of financing for iotis
The IoT start-up iotis was founded by Christian Sist and Lennardt Hachmeister together with former German international soccer player Fabian Ernst. The meeting in the arena brought together representatives from the IT group adesso and sports technology specialist Riedel Communications and invested 2.15 million euros in seed financing in the start-up together with the Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaft Niedersachsen and the Hannover Beteiligungsfonds. In addition, the management of iotis was expanded to include the new CTO Dr. Peter Blank and COO Marcel Isakowitz.
Digitalization in soccer
Iotis is the first product to develop a smart soccer ball: The “smartball” is intended to provide players with feedback on their performance via an app — in terms of contacts or speeds, for example. In addition to improving their skills, soccer players can share their results with friends and teammates — similar to evaluating their own performance on a peloton bike.
“Digitalization in soccer is constantly advancing,” explains Fabian Ernst. “Everything is recorded — only the ball is the untouched topic. We are firmly convinced that this will happen, that some of the technology is already there, and that it will also find its way into professional sports. The only question is whether we'll do it in Germany — or someone else from America or China again. ”
In addition to the financial participation, CEO Lennardt Hachmeister is also pleased with the investors' wealth of experience: “With the new financial and strategic opportunities, we can further accelerate our vision of smart sports balls. ”
