Op-ed: What $5 billion humanoid robots taught me about risk, jobs and the future of the economy - CNBC
An Apollo humanoid robot prototype, made by Apptronik Inc., demonstrates its dexterity during a media day at the Mercedes-Benz Digital Factory Campus in Berlin, Germany on Tuesday, March 18, 2025.
Key takeaways
The most recent developments in humanoid robotics highlight a rapid shift from laboratory prototypes to real‑world deployments across manufacturing, logistics and consumer markets. In March 2026, Apptronik secured a $520 million funding round that lifted its valuation above $5 billion, positioning its Apollo humanoid platform as a potential game‑changer for labor‑intensive tasks and prompting investors to view the sector as a major economic lever. Chinese tech giant Xiaomi has begun testing its CyberOne‑derived humanoids on an electric‑vehicle production line, using advanced vision‑language‑action models and tactile perception to perform assembly tasks, signaling the company’s intent to integrate embodied AI into its expanding EV business. At the same Mobile World Congress, smartphone maker Honor unveiled its first humanoid robot as part of an “augmented human intelligence” strategy, targeting applications such as retail assistance and workplace inspection. In the United States, Agility Robotics announced a $400 million raise to scale its Digit platform and confirmed a deployment partnership with Toyota’s Canadian plant, while Boston Dynamics is preparing a new Atlas iteration for future use at Hyundai’s Georgia factory. A panel at the 2026 Robotics Summit & Expo, featuring leaders from Agility, Boston Dynamics and ASTM International, will assess the realistic capabilities of humanoids in factories and warehouses, emphasizing the need to separate hype from viable automation solutions. Regional forecasts, such as the Pittsburgh Robotics Network’s outlook, predict that affordable bipedal robots could fall below $20,000 by the end of the year, unlocking mass‑production deployments in industrial settings. Market analysts also project the global humanoid robot market to approach $30 billion by 2036 as automotive and logistics sectors scale their use of these machines. Meanwhile, Chinese company UBTECH continues to amass thousands of hours of factory‑floor training for its Walker series, aiming to raise task‑completion efficiency from the current 99 % toward 60 % of human performance by 2026. Together, these moves indicate that humanoid robots are transitioning from experimental showcases to commercially viable assets addressing labor shortages and repetitive‑task demands worldwide.
An Apollo humanoid robot prototype, made by Apptronik Inc., demonstrates its dexterity during a media day at the Mercedes-Benz Digital Factory Campus in Berlin, Germany on Tuesday, March 18, 2025.
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Recently, Apptronik announced a $520 million funding round at a valuation north of $5 billion, with Alphabet's Google DeepMind as a partner. Today, their market position within the humanoid robot category sounds inevitable.
In 2019, it didn't.
I was on a YPO forum trip to Austin and had arranged for our group to visit Capital Factory to hear startup pitches. As usual, most were forgettable. Interesting ideas, thin moats. No technical talent.
Then Jeff Cardenas walked in, holding an interesting looking robotic arm. CNBC Disruptor 50
Op-ed: What $5 billion humanoid robots taught me about risk, jobs and the future of the economy
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Key Points
Labor is one of the largest input costs in the global economy, so if you can build a humanoid that performs repetitive, dangerous, or ergonomically brutal tasks, you're altering a cost structure that sits at the core of global GDP. That's the type of risk profile that can make an early-stage investment go to zero quick or grow non-linearly, writes CEO and investor Ravin Gandhi. For UT Austin-founded robotics startup Apptronik, which he invested in back in 2019 at a valuation of $15 million, it's been the latter after a recent deal valuing the company at $5 billion. The U.S. has the ingredients: world-class universities, deep capital markets, and founders willing to take uncomfortable risks. We should use them, and give them every support.
Elon Musk says that there will eventually be more humanoid robots than humans. And these robots might be the key to interplanetary travel and many other almost unimaginable advances.
But just a few years ago, Apptronik was just a founder with conviction, a real technical bench, and a problem large enough to matter. That's usually how the best bets begin.
Humanoid robotics may take longer than optimists expect. It will almost certainly cost more than projected. Manufacturing scale will separate winners from dreamers.
But if it works, it won't just create a large company. It will change how work gets done.
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