Robot Brain Startup Physical Intelligence Raises $400M At $2B Valuation

Physical Intelligence, a startup growing brains for a wide selection of robots, raised a $400 million spherical at a $2 billion valuation led by Jeff Bezos, Lux Capital and Thrive Capital, per The New York Times.

Others concerned within the spherical embrace OpenAI, Redpoint Ventures and Bond, per the report.

The San Francisco-based firm had raised a $70 million seed spherical at a valuation of about $400 million again in March.

Bodily Intelligence is simply the most recent startup wanting to make use of AI to enhance how robots function and create foundational software program that may very well be used on quite a lot of robotic fashions as a substitute of getting to create separate working software program for every particular person mannequin.

“What we’re doing isn’t just a mind for any explicit robotic,” Karol Hausman, the corporate’s co-founder and chief govt, advised the Instances. “It’s a single generalist mind that may management any robotic.”

Large bets

Buyers have already got positioned large bets within the intersection of robotics and its AI-enhanced foundational software program — particularly Bezos.

In February, Sunnyvale, California-based Figure, which is growing AI-enhanced robots that it hopes will be capable to carry out harmful jobs and alleviate labor shortages, raised an enormous $675 million spherical at a pre-money valuation of roughly $2 billion. That spherical included investments from Nvidia, Bezos’ Explore Investments and others.

In July, Pittsburgh-based Skild AI — additionally growing mind fashions that can be utilized in quite a lot of robots and for various duties — raised a $300 million Sequence A led by Coatue, Lightspeed Venture Partners, SoftBank Group and Bezos, by his Bezos Expeditions. The funding valued the corporate at $1.5 billion.

Total, this has been a good year for robotics startups receiving funding.

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Illustration: Dom Guzman