AI Startup Figure Raises $70 Million for Humanoid Robot

May 24, 2023 thejournalbiz

AI robotics startup Figure raised $70 million to help develop a humanoid robot that it believes could one day take on a wide range of tasks traditionally performed by people.

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AI Startup Figure Raises $70 Million for Humanoid Robot
AI robotics startup Figure raised $70 million to help develop a humanoid robot believing one day they'll take over tasks traditionally performed by people.#ai #Robotics #startup https://t.co/w5MP6ACV68

— The_Journalbiz (@the_journalbiz) May 24, 2023

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Figure AI thinks its futuristic robot, called Figure 01, will be able to address labor shortages, do dangerous jobs and help support the global supply chain, the company said.

“We hope that we’re one of the first groups to bring to market a humanoid that can actually be useful and do commercial activities,” founder and Chief Executive Officer Brett Adcock said in an interview. “We believe that the structured, repetitive, and often dangerous tasks in warehouses are a great potential first application.”

Adcock founded Figure in 2022 and its 50-person team includes former staffers from Boston Dynamics, Tesla Inc., Google’s moonshot research lab and others.

Figure, like most companies working on human-like robots, sees warehouses as the main opportunity for commercialization for now.

The figure is entering an expanding market for robotics and drones, with $5.73 billion of total capital raised in 2022, according to data from PitchBook.