IAG backs exosuit startup Verve Motion via IAGi Ventures
What's the deal? IAGDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the airline group behind IberiaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Vueling, and Level, has invested in Verve Motion, a Harvard University spin-off that builds wearable exosuits to help workers with repetitive lifting. The investment, made through its IAGi VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → arm, is part of a round that has taken Verve Motion's total raised to more than $55 million (€48 million).
Who else is in? New and existing investors joined the round, including protective-equipment maker HexArmor. Verve Motion, founded in 2020 by Spanish entrepreneur Ignacio Galiana, already deploys its suits in logistics and industrial settings to improve worker comfort and cut injury risk.
What's the product? IAG and Verve Motion will test a new exosuit designed specifically for aviation, initially focused on shoulder support for baggage handlers. The pilot will explore how the suits can ease repetitive lifting and improve performance in ground and cargo operations.
Why now? The deal fits IAG's wider push to modernise operations. The group has said it will spend roughly €13.5 billion between 2024 and 2026 on fleet, operational efficiency, and customer experience, and recently agreed to fit Starlink high-speed wifi on more than 500 aircraft.
What they said: "Verve Motion is exactly the type of company we want to back through IAGi Ventures: a company applying innovative technology to solve real operational challenges," said IAG chief innovation officer Nacho Tovar. Galiana said baggage handlers do "one of the most physically demanding jobs" in any sector, adding that IAG brings "unique" knowledge of ground and cargo operations.
The signal: The bet shows IAG extending its technology spending beyond the passenger cabin and into ground handling — a labour-intensive task where automation and ergonomics could lift productivity and lower injury risk. It is a modest move rather than a transformative one, but it points to airlines treating back-office operations as a target for innovation.
Read more: Europa Press
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
