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§ Private Profile · Toronto, Canada
B2B hardware manufacturer designing force/torque sensing systems, providing robots a sense of touch for surgical and industrial automation.
Based in Toronto, Ontario, Forcen designs and manufactures advanced force and torque sensing systems that provide robotic components with precise human-level tactile sensitivity. The company's core hardware product, ForceFilm, is a thin force-sensing film laminated onto robots used across the surgical, industrial automation, logistics, and aerospace sectors. Operating as a business-to-business hardware supplier to robotics firms, the enterprise generates an estimated $5 million in annual revenue and maintains a workforce of 21 to 50 employees. The manufacturer recently secured proof-of-concept contracts with six major global original equipment manufacturers to scale its prototype production facilities. Forcen has raised $8.85 million CAD in total funding and reached an estimated valuation of $16 million, backed by notable investors including Brightspark Ventures, BDC Capital, Garage Capital, and MaRS IAF. The company was founded in 2015 by Robert Brooks and Justin Wee.
Forcen has raised $6.5M across 2 funding rounds.
Forcen has raised $6.5M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Forcen has raised $6.5M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Forcen's investors include BDC Venture Capital, Mark Skapinker, Archangel Network of Funds, Gerry Fung, Vishal Rao, Emerging Ventures, Garage Capital, Zeeshan Ali, Brian Hunter, Angel One, Golden Triangle Angel Network.
Forcen has raised $6.5M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $6.0M Series A in April 2024.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 1, 2024 | $6M Series A | BDC Venture Capital, Mark Skapinker | Archangel Network OF Funds, Gerry Fung, Vishal RAO, Emerging Ventures, Garage Capital, Zeeshan ALI | Announced |
| May 1, 2019 | $500K Seed | Brian Hunter | Archangel Network OF Funds, BDC Venture Capital, Vishal RAO, Angel ONE, Golden Triangle Angel Network | Announced |
Forcen (ForceN) is a Toronto-based deeptech robotics company founded in 2015 that designs and manufactures scalable force/torque sensing systems and edge intelligence for complex, unstructured robotics applications.[1][3][4] It serves world-leading robotics OEMs in surgery, logistics, humanoid robotics, and frontier sectors (space, nuclear, underwater, food/agriculture), solving the critical gap in tactile intelligence to enable safe, superhuman touch feedback amid labor shortages in medicine, warehouses, and manufacturing.[1][2][5] The company's ForceFilm transducer technology provides thin, flexible, customizable sensors with high overload protection, on-board processing, and plug-and-play integration via USB, CAN, EtherCAT, and Ethernet—driving growth through ISO 9001/13485 certification and partnerships with top OEMs.[3][4][5]
Forcen emerged in 2015 from Toronto's tech ecosystem, initially focused on exceeding human-level haptic sensitivity for teleoperated surgical robotics.[3][4] Led by Founder and CEO Robert Brooks, alongside VP of Engineering Albert Chen, VP of Product, Director of R&D, and specialized product leads in surgical and logistics domains, the tight-knit multidisciplinary team drew from University of Toronto's entrepreneurship network.[1][4] Early traction came from developing ultra-robust, thin-film sensors that addressed IoT/Industry 4.0 demands for complex tasks without requiring machine redesigns, evolving from surgical optics-like "touch amplification" to broader applications in logistics and frontier robotics.[1][3][5]
Forcen rides the robotics-AI convergence wave, providing the "missing sense of touch" essential for humanoid, surgical, and logistics robots to handle unstructured tasks amid global labor shortages.[1][2] Timing aligns with Industry 4.0/IoT growth, where edge computing demands prevent machine failures in complex settings—market forces like rising automation in warehouses, precision surgery, and frontier exploration (e.g., space/underwater) favor its robust, scalable sensors.[3][5] As a Tier 1 supplier to leading OEMs, Forcen influences the ecosystem by enabling safer human-robot interaction and accelerating deployment of tactile AI, from University of Toronto spinouts to global manufacturing.[1][2][4]
Forcen is poised to expand as a key enabler in the tactile intelligence stack, with next steps including deeper humanoid/frontier integrations and volume scaling under ISO standards.[4][5] Trends like AI-driven robotics proliferation and labor crises will amplify demand, potentially evolving its role from sensor supplier to full-stack physical intelligence provider. This positions Forcen to transform unstructured robotics, building on its surgical origins to touch every corner of automation.