Equestrian startup Seaver raises €1.8 million for its horse monitoring device

French startup Seaver has raised €1.8 million in seed funding for its connected girth for monitoring horse health and performance.

The investment comes from GO Capital, Normandie Participation, Crédit Agricole Normandie, Normandie Business Angels, Horse Angels, Bpifrance, and a number of private investors.

Seaver develops connected devices for the equestrian industry. The girth worn by the horse provides owners and coaches with data on heart and respiratory rate, calories, gait, and jump. It plans to develop other products in the future.

The new funding will be invested in R&D and sales and marketing to reach customers outside of France. It previously raised €140,000 through crowdfunding and has received the endorsement of French riding champions such Olympic gold medallist, Roger Yves Bost, and Young Rider European Champion, Marie Charlotte Fuss.

“Activity trackers for humans are starting to become popular today. It was absurd that technology had not yet entered the horse community,” commented Seaver cofounder Zakaria Antar. “This fundraising will allow us to continue the work begun two years ago, whose goal is to revolutionise the way we ride and take care of our horses. This also represents an opportunity to further understand this great animal.”