Bad timing for a Boston Dynamics IPO
Or is it? Hopefully better timing for Agility and congratulations to Chef Robotics, CMR Surgical and the others who raised funding last week.
Tens of thousands of Boston Dynamics robots going into Hyundai’s operations in next years
So the rumored Boston Dynamics IPO is still only a rumor but gains a little more likelihood with the ongoing Hyundai investment preparations, and strong interest in manufacturing robots in the USA. Boston Dynamics and Hyundai have announced more details about that strategy!
We also had a great Bots&Beer at Circuit Launch Mountain View this week with someone even driving all the way from Reno to show off their humanoid robot (thanks Roberto!), and other demos, including PartCAD - which is Git for physical design. Also great presentations from Nic at DeepSea Developments and Yegor of Instock Robotics. Thanks Tony D’Antonio for photos!
Robotics startups and recent funding in Bay Area (since last week)
Aurora Avionics - Venture Round £500,000
Elite Robots - Venture Round CNY100,000,000
Jingshi Technology - Corporate Round - n/a
Triorb - Series B - Y160,000,000
Triorb - Debt Financing - Y500,000,000
Goat Robotics - Seed Round - rupee 26,600,000
Chef Robotics - Series A - $20.6m
Chef Robotics - Debt Financing - $22.5m
Next Generation Robotics - Series A - eu4.5m
Agility Robotics - Venture Series Unknown - n/a
According to The Information who may have seen a term sheet, Agility Robotics is raising $400 million at a $1.75 billion pre-money valuation
Tective Robotics - Venture Series Unknown - n/a
Zhonganlian - Series A - CNY10,000,000
CMR Surgical - Venture Series Unknown - $200m
CMR Surgical - Debt Financing - n/a
Narwal Robotics - Series A - n/a
Botinkit - Series B - n/a
Our friends at Chef Robotics reached out personally on Monday with more information, having closed their Series A funding round raising a total of $43.1 million!
This funding will be used to scale the deployment of our AI-enabled meal assembly robots. It's exciting times over here - demand for flexible automation is growing, and we're shipping a lot of robots. I've attached a press release with full details of the round.
Here's the story CNBC published: Chef Robotics raises $20.6 million to continue building AI robot arms ($20.6M is the total figure without debt raised included)
Here's the official press release with full details of the funding round: Chef Robotics Announces $43M Series A Round Led by Avataar Ventures to Scale the Deployment of AI-Enabled Robotics
Here's a blog we wrote that tells the story of how we got here, and how the funding will be used: We’ve Raised a $43M Series A to Accelerate Our AI-Enabled Robot Deployments
How China’s interlinking ecosystem helps robotics
NYSE Wired Robotics & AI Media Week
TheCUBE's coverage of the NYSE Wired Robotics & AI Media Week highlighted the transformative impact of robotics and artificial intelligence across various sectors. Key discussions centered around advancements in manufacturing, the integration of AI in robotics, and the evolving landscape of technology and finance. Industry leaders shared insights on how these technologies are bridging gaps between virtual and physical worlds, emphasizing collaboration, innovation, and sustainability as critical components for future growth.
30 plus interviews on demand with robotics CEOs like Jeff Cardenas, Tobin Fisher, Saman Farid, Jack Morrison, Noah Ready Campbell, and companies like Bright Machines, Machina Labs, Elroy Air, Brain Corp, Dexterity and more.
Call for Robotics Startups
There are several opportunities for startups at ICRA 2025 - SEE ALL HERE
Are you a startup fundraising atm? Fill out our "For Investors Eyes Only" spreadsheet.
Call for Speakers: Kat Scott from Open Robotics has posted a call for speakers/projects for ROS by the Bay next meetup on May 1st (probably when they launch Kilted Kaiju, swag and testing party). Contact Kat@openrobotics.org
Apply Now for the Vogue Singapore x BMW Innovation Prize 2025
Brinc is proud to be the programme partner for the Vogue Singapore x BMW Innovation Prize 2025! With a focus on sustainability, technology, and circular innovation, we will be delivering a curated bootcamp on fundraising, commercialization, and brand building to help founders sharpen their go-to-market strategies, access global investors, and tap into real-world growth.
Shortlisted founders will:
Compete for international recognition, investment opportunities, and a generous prize package
Gain insight from global leaders like Corey Moran (Google) and Annie Lindmark (H&M Foundation)
Receive tailored mentorship and pitch to top investors and industry experts
Applications close April 13, 2025! LEARN MORE & APPLY NOW
The IARA incubator in Guangzhou is holding an online startup showcase featuring companies from around the world. Date/time to be confirmed but in about 2 weeks. If you’re interested, email me - andra@robotlaunch.com
The IERA Award is calling for submissions, deadline May 31st, if you are world class in robotics innovation and commercialization. The award is hosted by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) and the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Industry Activities Board. Previous winners include many famous names.
ROSCon Diversity Scholarships! Apply by April 18th
Send me your community news to share!
Robotics News
BYD announces home solar-powered humanoid robot for $10,000! - Clean Technica (This is an April 1st joke… at least the solar-powered part of it!)
Should Robots Wield Guns? States Move to Draw the Line - Government Technology
Tech jobs, robots are Lutnick’s vision for America’s “manufacturing renaissance” - Axios
Invasion of the Home Humanoid Robots - NYTimes
Unitree leaves backdoor in product - Axios
How Robots Are Already Improving Golf Courses - Forbes
Carbon Robotics unveils ‘AutoTractor’, a self-driving platform to boost productivity on farms - GeekWire
Taylor Farms acquires ag robotics company FarmWise - The Packer
Okibo painting robotics company enters U.S. - HBS Dealer
Why robotics is so hot right now - TechBrew
Agility Robotics reportedly raising $400M for humanoid warehouse robots - GeekWire
Stanford HAI Conference Explores Robotics in a Human-Centered World: Hype, Hope, and Future Directions - HAI
How we built the new family of Gemini Robotics models - Google Blog
Robotics Events
BuiltWorlds Venture West Summit - April 8-10
Bots&Beer Mountain View - May 7
Online Prototype to Product Workshop - early May
Automate Detroit - May 12-15
ICRA 2025 Atlanta Georgia 17 May - 23 May 2025
SVR Robotics Leadership Summit
Robotics Invest Boston - June 10-11
CVPR Nashville Tennessee - June 11-15
Hard Tech Venture Summit & Startup Manufacturing Workshop - June 18-19
Future Monozukuri Osaka Japan 16 July -19 July 2025
SVR Robotics Investment Summit
Join the organizing team at Silicon Valley Robotics - bots&beer@svrobo.org
