Investors ignored manufacturing startups for years. These ex-Apple engineers raised a $33 million fund to change that. - Business Insider
Subscribe Newsletters You're currently following this topic! Want to unfollow? Unsubscribe via the link in your email. The latest news and analysis on robotics, from humanoid AI to real-world automation.
Key takeaways
- The most recent wave of humanoid‑robot news shows the technology moving rapidly from prototypes to commercial deployments and large‑scale financing.
- In early July, Chinese firms UBTECH and Unitree Robotics announced new manufacturing and service hubs in the Tianjin Economic‑Technological Development Area, positioning the region as a hub for mass production, after UBTECH’s Walker S2 demonstrated autonomous battery swapping.
- In the United States, Agility Robotics confirmed a SPAC merger that will list the company as the only publicly traded pure‑play humanoid maker, building on its Digit deployments across nine customer sites including Amazon and Toyota.
- Meanwhile, Apptronik highlighted its dual‑mode Apollo platform—both legged and wheeled—and its plan to create public “Robot Parks” worldwide.
- In Europe, AGIBOT unveiled its A3 humanoid at a London conference and launched a robot‑as‑a‑service model for retail and hospitality use.
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The latest news and analysis on robotics, from humanoid AI to real-world automation.
The latest news and analysis on robotics, from humanoid AI to real-world automation.
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Exclusive
Investors ignored manufacturing startups for years. These ex-Apple engineers raised a $33 million fund to change that.
Startups Apple Robotics More Exclusive
HOME Subscribe The fund is launching as investors pay renewed attention to the physical world, driven by AI's move from chatbots into machines, falling hardware costs, labor shortages, and geopolitical pressure to reshore supply chains. As the software boom has cooled, investors are shifting their attention to bets including robotics, chips, manufacturing, and "physical AI", a term popularized by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to describe AI systems that can act in the real world.
Venture capital investment in global robotics and physical AI has grown from around $4 billion in 2019 to $26 billion in 2025, according to PitchBook data. So far this year, companies in the space have raised more than $23 billion.
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