Sam Altman-Backed Coco Robotics Secures $80M for AI-Powered Delivery Robots

Sam Altman-backed Coco Robotics raises $80M | TechCrunch

The funding round included angel investors Sam Altman and Max Altman, both returning investors, in addition to VC firms like Pelion Venture Partners and Offline Ventures, among others. This brings the company's total funding to more than $120 million. The company last raised a $36 million Series A round in 2021. Coco's zero-emissions robots can hold 90 liters worth of groceries or goods and have made more than 500,000 deliveries since they hit the streets in 2020, the company said. It says it works with national retailers including Subway, Wingstop and Jack in the Box. Sam Altman's financial interest in Coco is clear. While he's personally providing capital to the company, OpenAI apparently gets a benefit too. Coco announced a partnership with OpenAI in March which allows Coco to use OpenAI while the AI company gains the real-world data the robots collect to train its models. The company was founded in 2020 by Brad Squicciarini and Zach Rash. TechCrunch reached out to Coco for more information.

Altman-backed robot delivery startup raises $80 Million in funding

Coco Robotics, a startup that operates a fleet of cooler-sized delivery robots on wheels, has raised $80 million in funding from OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman and other backers, a sign that automated delivery technology is advancing. The financing, which Coco Robotics plans to announce Wednesday, was led by venture capital firm SNR, with participation from investors including Pelion Venture Partners, Offline Ventures and one of Altman's brothers, Max. With the new funding, Coco Robotics, whose corporate name is Cyan Robotics Inc., has raised more than $110 million to date, including a prior round that was led by OpenAI's Altman. The company declined to provide a valuation. Founded in 2020, Coco Robotics is one of a number of startups deploying robots to expedite deliveries in urban spaces. The Santa Monica, California-based company currently operates a fleet of about 1,300 electric robots in Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and Helsinki, CEO and co-founder Zach Rash told Bloomberg News. The company has partnerships with food delivery services DoorDash Inc. and Uber Technologies Inc.'s Uber Eats and is starting to work directly with merchants, he said. The startup also announced a tie-up with OpenAI in March. Under the agreement, Coco Robotics is using OpenAI's technology, along with its own software, to help its robots avoid obstacles and make decisions on the fly. It also shares data with OpenAI about delivery trips in urban environments. Altman was not involved in the partnership discussions between OpenAI and Coco Robotics, Rash said. Coco Robotics will use the new funds to improve the technology that helps power its robots and to scale up its fleet, Rash said. He expects to have at least 10,000 robots in operation by the end of next year. Coco Robotics plans to roll out the robots in major cities in the US and Europe, he added, without naming specific locations. "We've gotten a huge amount of requests for us to be everywhere and we're trying to triage what is the most important," Rash said. "We have tents in the entire parking lot here at the office to just try to put out robots faster to try to keep up with it." Initially, Coco Robotics' robots were operated entirely by remote workers who directed them from merchants to customers, with the expectation that the startup would gather navigation data and use it to build software to guide the vehicles. Today, the robots drive autonomously in most situations, according to Rash. A human teleoperator takes over during critical situations, he said, such as at busy intersections or if the robot's AI software is unsure about how to proceed. The company's current robot can technically travel as fast as 15 miles per hour, Rash said, but typically sticks to slower speeds and operates mostly on sidewalks. The next version of the device, which Coco Robotics plans to roll out in 2026, is intended to be more reliable so that it can make deliveries all day and over thousands of miles before needing maintenance, Rash said. The company is also focused on making the robot faster and deft enough to move between sidewalks, roads and bike lanes, as needed. "Over time," Rash said, "we want this to be the autonomous vehicle equivalent of a bike courier."

Altman-backed Coco Robotics quietly secures $80M

Coco Robotics, a Los Angeles-based startup specializing in last-mile delivery robots, secured $80 million in funding, the company said Wednesday. The funding round saw participation from angel investors Sam Altman and Max Altman, both of whom had previously invested. Venture capital firms such as Pelion Venture Partners and Offline Ventures also joined the round. Including this latest investment, Coco Robotics has now raised over $120 million in total funding. The company's previous funding round was a $36 million Series A, which occurred in 2021. Founded in 2020 by Brad Squicciarini and Zach Rash, Coco Robotics' zero-emissions robots are designed to carry up to 90 liters of groceries or other goods. Since their introduction in 2020, these robots have completed more than 500,000 deliveries, according to the company. Coco Robotics reports partnerships with national retailers, including Subway, Wingstop, and Jack in the Box. In March, Coco announced a partnership with OpenAI, which allows Coco to utilize OpenAI technology. In return, OpenAI gains access to real-world data collected by Coco's robots to train its AI models.