Figure, an AI robotics startup that is building general-purpose humanoid robots, has raised $70 million in Series A funding to accelerate the development and accelerate the development and manufacturing of the first-of-its-kind AI autonomous humanoid called Figure 01.
Parkway Venture Capital led the round. Although the exact valuation of the one-year-old company was not disclosed, a reliable source familiar with the firm estimated its value to exceed $400 million. Brett Adcock, a figure founder and CEO, also invested $20 million of his own money in the round. Other backers include Aliya Capital and Bold Ventures.
In addition,Figure said it will use the funds to build out Figure's AI data pipeline for autonomous operations and drive toward commercialization.
In Sunnyvale, California, Figure is building humanoid robots designed for initial deployment into the workforce to address labor shortages and support the supply chain on a worldwide scale.
In the past few months, figure has made notable hires across AI, Controls, Manipulation, Perception, and Commercial Operations. Bob Klunk, the team's new hire, has joined the team as head of Warehouse Solutions to help bring Figure 01 into its first real-world application. Bob, a former geodis SVP of operations, is a fulfillment operations veteran and brings over two decades of storage experience to the team.
We are dedicated to investing in companies that are pioneers in AI technology, and we believe that autonomous humanoid robots have the potential to revolutionize the labor market. We are impressed by the rapid progress that Brett and the team of industry experts atFigure have made in the past year and are relishing to be a financial partner to provide resources to accelerate the commercialization ofFigure 01, said Jesse Coors-Blankenship, co-founder and Managing Partner of Parkway Venture Capital.
The race for the next humanoid robot has been fiercely debated, with established tech giants and startups such as Figure amongst the list of potential contenders. Tesla, for example, unveiled a prototype of its humanoid robot called Optimus last year. Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, forecasted that the company would accept orders for the robot in three to five years, with a price tag below $20,000.
Adcock, the creator of Archer Aviation, describesFigure as a robotics firm that focuses on creating robots capable of performing various tasks. The ultimate goal of the project is to create robots that can learn and interact with their environment.
The near-term goal is to deploy humanoids into the workforce and we believe that the structured, repetitive, and often dangerous tasks in warehouses are a great potential first application. This investment round will test early warehouse solutions and gives us the ability to move and iterate quickly ahead of commercial operations. I look forward to growing this strategic partnership with Parkway and all participating investors to support the success of Figure, said Brett Adcock, founder and CEO of Figure.