Humanoid Robot Developer Raises $350MHumanoid Robot Developer Raises $350M

Humanoid robot developer Apptronik has raised $350 million to develop and deploy humanoid robots at scale. 

The funding round was led by B Capital and Capital Factory, with Google also participating. 

Apptronik said the funding would fuel the deployment of its Apollo humanoid robot and help the company scale operations, accelerate innovation and grow its team to meet demand for next-generation Ai-powered humanoid robots. 

"We’re creating the world’s most advanced and capable humanoid robots, designed to work alongside humans in meaningful and transformative ways,” Jeff Cardenas, Apptronik’s co-founder and CEO, said in the announcement. “By uniting cutting-edge AI with hardware engineered for meaningful interaction, we're shaping a future where robots become true partners in driving progress.”

In 2022, Apptronik partnered with NASA to work toward commercializing the Apollo humanoid robot. 

Last March, Apptronik announced a partnership with Mercedes-Benz, its first commercial deployment. Under the project, Apollo is taking over some of the more labor-intensive factory tasks including assembly, component inspection and delivering the constructed parts later in the manufacturing process.

Last year,  GXO partnered with Apptronik to test the Apollo humanoid "warehouse buddy” robots to automate warehouse work, including item picking.

Related:NASA, Apptronik Partner to Commercialize Humanoid Robots

“With Apptronik, we see a world in which humanoid robots play a vital role in addressing societal challenges — from assisting with disaster relief and elder care to supporting space exploration and medical advancements,” Howard Morgan, chair and general partner of B Capital, said in the announcement. “Industry leaders like Mercedes-Benz and GXO Logistics are already seeing the real-world impact of Apptronik's technology.” 

The company also has a collaboration with Nvidia to leverage Apollo in Omniverse digital twins and a partnership with Google DeepMind’s robotics team. 

Apollo was first unveiled in 2023, designed to meet ongoing labor shortage challenges and rising production demands.