Apptronik Secures $403M in Series A Funding for AI-Powered Humanoid Robotics

Apptronik Secures $53M in Extended Series A, Backed by Mercedes-Benz

Apptronik, an AI-powered humanoid robotics startup based in the US, announced on Tuesday that it has raised an additional $53 million in its Series A round. This brings Apptronik's total Series A funding to $403 million, adding to the previously announced $350 million, led by B Capital and Capital Factory, with participation from Google. New investors include Mercedes-Benz, Japan Post Capital, ARK Invest, Helium-3, Magnetar, RyderVentures, and a syndicate led by Korea Investment Partners. The funding will support the production and deployment of Apptronik's AI-powered humanoid robot, Apollo, across industries such as automotive, electronics manufacturing, logistics, and consumer packaged goods. Joerg Burzer, member of the board of management at Mercedes-Benz Group AG said, "Our work with Apptronik has given us a front-row seat to the incredible pace of progress in humanoid robotics and AI, and the transformative potential these technologies hold for modern manufacturing." Mercedes-Benz is using Apollo robots in its manufacturing process by employing a method, 'teleoperation', where the robots are initially controlled remotely by humans to learn specific tasks. Currently, the robots are being tested at Mercedes-Benz's Digital Factory Campus in Marienfelde, Berlin, and in Kecskemet, Hungary, with plans to expand their deployment to additional sites, as announced by Burzer during a recent roundtable discussion in Berlin. Apptronik aims to create a future where humanoid robots collaborate seamlessly with humans, initially in logistics and manufacturing, with future applications in healthcare and elder care. This investment follows a year of record growth for Apptronik, including the strategic partnership with Google DeepMind's robotics team. This month, Google Deepmind also introduced two new AI models, Gemini Robotics and Gemini Robotics-ER, which have been designed to enhance robotic capabilities in the physical world. For this, the giant had expressed partnering further with Apptronik to develop the next generation of humanoid robots using these models. This will open the giant to more partnerships in the future, like those with testers including Agile Robots, Agility Robotics, Boston Dynamics and Enchanted Tools. In February this year, Apptronik announced a partnership with Jabil, a global leader in engineering and manufacturing, to build and integrate Apollo humanoid robots into Jabil's manufacturing operations. This partnership leveraged Apollo robots on the production lines that create them, marking progress towards robots constructing robots. The company had announced this in a post on X, saying it is "paving the way for Apollo to build Apollo."

ARK Invest joins $403M raise for AI robotics firm Apptronik

ARK Invest participated in Apptronik's $403 million Series A round, joining Mercedes-Benz, Google, and Japan Post Capital to fund humanoid robotics innovation. Cryptocurrency-friendly investment firm ARK Invest has joined a massive Series A funding round for Apptronik, a Texas-based firm building humanoid robots. Apptronik, on March 18, announced the successful close of an oversubscribed $403M Series A funding round, adding another $53 million to the $350 million round disclosed in February. After investing in Apptronik's Series A round, ARK has enabled investors to access the company through its ARK Venture Fund (ARKVX), which focuses on "disruptive innovation." "After investing in their Series A round, the ARK Venture Fund is proud to offer investors access to Apptronik! Download SoFi and gain access today," ARK wrote in an X post on Tuesday. Mercedes-Benz, Japan Post and Google among investors Led by California-based B Capital and Texas-based Capital Factory, the original $350 million Series A raise also featured participation from tech mogul Google. The latest raise included new investors such as the German automotive giant Mercedes-Benz, early-stage tech investor Japan Post Capital and RyderVentures, a corporate venture capital arm of Ryder System, as well as a syndicate led by Korea Investment Partners. Apptronik's oversubscribed raise reflects strong market demand and investor confidence in the transformative power of embodied artificial intelligence, or integration of AI into physical systems. Apptronik's vision: Man plus machine Founded in 2016, Apptronik is a robotics company that spun out of the University of Texas at Austin's Human-Centered Robotics Lab with the goal of bringing forth the next generation of robots. The company says it has developed 15 robotic systems, including the humanoid robot NASA Valkyrie, before unveiling Apollo -- an AI-powered humanoid designed for industrial work. "We believe that it is not Man versus Machine, but Man plus Machine that will take humanity into the next stage of evolution," Apptronik's website reads. According to TechCrunch, Apptronik's humanoid work dates back to 2013, when the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Austin competed in the NASA-DARPA Robotics Challenge, focusing on a humanoid robot called Valkyrie. Google's AI division, DeepMind, has also partnered with Apptronik to deliver embodied AI for its bipedal robots. Related: Not every AI agent needs its own cryptocurrency: CZ ARK Invest's investment in Apptronik further strengthens the company's commitment to innovation and technology, as the company's name acronym itself refers to "Active Research Knowledge." Apart from Apptronik, ARK has supported a wide number of AI platforms, including Anthropic, OpenAI, Groq and many others. In October 2024, ARK reportedly agreed to invest at least $250 million in OpenAI's funding round, with the AI firm becoming its third-largest holding in the Ark Venture Fund, accounting for 5% of its total assets. As of Feb. 28, Elon Musk's space technology firm, SpaceX, accounts for the largest share of the fund with a weight of roughly 16%, according to the official website.