Relay Inc. Raised $36 Million for Frontline Tech

Manufacturers are adopting smart radio systems to convert frontline voice data into actionable operational logs.

Updated on Sept. 30, 2026 in Manufacturing

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of an industrial radio handset, symbolizing the digitization of frontline voice data. — Relay Inc. secured $36 million in a new funding round to expand its cloud-based smart radio platform for manufacturing frontline operations. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Relay Inc. secured $36 million in funding to advance its cloud-hosted smart radio technology, bringing its total capital raised to over $90 million. The company targets the digitization of frontline voice data to improve efficiency in physical operations.

Why it matters

Businesses currently lose critical operational knowledge through signal evaporation, as significant manual data often fails to move from radio reports to formal documentation. By digitizing these interactions, operators can bridge the gap in equipment stoppage reporting and safety monitoring.

Relay Inc. raised $36 million in a round led by International Paper Co., bringing total capital to over $90 million. This technology aims to capture data in environments where internal logs currently record only 25% of equipment stoppages.

The players

Relay Inc.

A developer of cloud-hosted smart radio systems that transcribe voice data for frontline workers.

International Paper Co.

A global producer of renewable fiber-based packaging and pulp products that led the investment round.

Cerity Partners Ventures

An investment firm that participated in the capital raise for Relay Inc.

G2 Ventures

An venture capital group focused on industrial innovation that contributed to the funding round.

The details

The platform captures real-time radio communications and uses domain-specific training to transcribe frontline reports into queryable data. Its TeamTranslate capability supports more than 30 languages, allowing multinational firms to standardize data collection across diverse workforces. By automatically logging these interactions, the system helps managers move beyond paper-based or missed reports to improve equipment uptime.

September 30, 2026: Relay Inc. announced the $36 million funding round.

Market Landscape

This investment highlights the increasing priority manufacturers place on the digital transformation of physical operations. It marks a push to automate the capture of frontline data to counter signal evaporation across the industry.

Operators should audit their current frontline reporting processes to identify the volume of radio communications that remain unrecorded. Evaluate whether automating the transcription of these logs could help reduce equipment downtime and improve safety compliance.

The takeaway

The move underscores the value of converting fragmented verbal radio reports into structured, actionable business data. Managers should track the percentage of equipment stoppages currently absent from their maintenance logs as a baseline for potential automation ROI.