German Startup Neura Robotics Secures €120M for Advanced Cognitive and Humanoid Robots

German humanoid robot to see, hear, touch better with new funding boost

"Cognitive robotics is expected to become bigger than the smartphone," said David Reger, founder and CEO of Neura Robotics. The company aims to create robots that can effectively perceive, interpret, and respond to their environment. "Founded in 2019, Neura Robotics has quickly become a global leader in cognitive and humanoid robotics, creating robots designed to work seamlessly with humans in industries such as manufacturing, logistics, and healthcare," said the company in a press release. These robots are equipped with advanced sensors, enabling them to see, hear, and perceive touch. This allows for safe and efficient collaboration with humans in various industrial settings. The new funding will be used to further enhance these sensory capabilities and improve the robots' capacity to process and react to information. Neura Robotics has a diverse portfolio of robots, including MAiRA, the world's first cognitive cobot. MAiRA seamlessly integrates artificial intelligence and robotics, enabling autonomous operation and safe interaction with human workers.

Neura Robotics raises €120m to develop 'cognitive' robots

The funding will be used to advance the start-up's development of cognitive and humanoid robots. Germany-based Neura Robotics yesterday (15 January) announced it has raised €120m in a Series B funding round to develop what it calls "cognitive" and "humanoid" robots. Established in 2019, Neura Robotics is led by its CEO and founder, David Reger, and claims to be the only humanoid robotics company in Germany. According to the start-up, its mission is to "expand the skill set of collaborative robots with cognitive capabilities" with the aim of allowing these robots to work alongside humans, all without having to invest in convoluted and expensive safety systems. The funding round was led by Lingotto Investment Management, with participation from BlueCrest Capital Management, InterAlpen Partners, C4 Ventures, Vsquared Ventures, HV Capital, Volvo Cars Tech Fund, Delta Electronics, L-Bank, Reger himself, and others. The fresh capital will advance Neura Robotics' research and development into cognitive and humanoid robotics, and will also support the launch of new products. Moreover, it will further build on Neura Robotics' own Neuraverse, a cloud-based software platform which allows the company's partners and customers to craft their own robotics applications. The latest development marks further steady growth in Neura Robotics. In the last year, the business doubled its number of employees to more than 300 people and it claims to already have a $1bn order book. Neura Robotics also moved the majority of its production from China to Germany last year. At present, the company has five robot models, including the MAV mobile robot, which is capable of transporting heavy loads, and MiPA, which is a human-like robot with a long arm that can, for example, play a game of 'catch' or even serve trays to people (although it should be noted that the latter product is not on the market yet). In addition, its humanoid robot, 4NE-1 (which is capable of performing tasks such as ironing) is still in the pilot stage, with a third generation of it due for release next year. Cognitive robotics to be 'bigger than the smartphone' Reger said the latest raise shows the "confidence" investors have in both the Neura Robotics team and advanced robotics in Europe. Explaining his optimism for the near future when it comes to robotics, Reger voiced his belief that cognitive robotics will "become bigger than the smartphone". "I am proud that Neura Robotics is the first one to ship a commercially-viable cognitive robot and remains the only humanoid robotics company in Germany," he said. Nikhil Srinivasan, managing partner of Lingotto Horizon, said that the organisation is "proud" to invest in Neura Robotics. "With phenomenal artificial intelligence capabilities, an extraordinary growth trajectory and a billion-dollar order book, Neura Robotics is on track to potentially becoming a multibillion-dollar company and one of the most prominent robotics companies in the world," Srinivasan asserted. Like many fields of technology, such as AI, the cognitive robotics market is anticipated to grow in the coming years. Last year, a report found that the market was valued at $6bn and is expected to increase to $19bn by the end of 2037. Don't miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic's digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.