Tesla robotics growth rival Apptronik introduced a $350 million Sequence A funding spherical Thursday morning to scale the manufacturing of synthetic intelligence-powered humanoid robots.
The funding spherical was co-led by B Capital and Capital Manufacturing unit, and included backing from Google, CEO Jeff Cardenas mentioned in an unique Squawk Field interview Thursday.
Apptronik, a Texas-based robotics developer based in 2016, beforehand raised $28 million and is presently engaged on deploying what the corporate calls a “groundbreaking” humanoid robotic designed for industrial work named Apollo.
Jeff Cardenas, Apptronik Apollo and Yemi A.D. on the Featured Session: Robotic Renaissance: The Daybreak of Humanoid Innovation as a part of SXSW 2024 Convention and Festivals held on the Hilton Austin on March 14, 2024 in Austin, Texas. (
Mike Jordan | Sxsw Convention & Festivals | Getty Photos
“What’s occurring in robotics is robots, with the ability of AI, have gotten rather more versatile,” Cardenas mentioned. “Now we’re getting these robots out into the world in a fairly large means and scaling them up and going from trade and into the house sooner or later.”
The brand new funding will permit the corporate to scale its robotic growth to probably deal with purposes like manufacturing and healthcare. The robots shall be educated individually from people on repetitive duties, Cardenas mentioned, earlier than they start integrating into human life.
Apptronik has partnered with NASA and NVIDIA as it really works on iterations of robots that rival these of Elon Musk’s Tesla. The corporate has developed 15 robotic programs, together with NASA’s humanoid robotic Valkyrie.
“The goal worth is for these robots to be lower than the worth of a automobile, so we have been working over time, we’re on our ninth iteration of human robotic,” Cardenas mentioned. “These robots are going to get rather more inexpensive over time.”
The corporate can also be working with Google DeepMind to work on creating the AI driving the robotics know-how.
The Tesla Bot humanoid robotic of Tesla ”Optimus” is displayed on the 2023 World Synthetic Intelligence Convention in Shanghai, China, July 6, 2023.
Costfoto | Nurphoto | Getty Photos
Tesla has additionally moved into the fast-evolving humanoid robotics trade with the Tesla Optimus robotic. In response to Goldman Sachs, the worldwide marketplace for humanoid robots may attain $38 billion by 2035.
“I feel we’re proper there within the race,” Cardenas mentioned. “I feel what this spherical represents is that our buyers are actually backing us and suppose that now we have an actual shot at profitable this race.”