Just posted to my Forbes column about the escalating race to build humanoid robots and the sheer scale of capital pouring in.
Apptronik just closed a massive $520 million extension to its Series A, bringing the total to an eye-catching $935 million to ramp production of its humanoid robot, Apollo. That puts the company firmly in the global top tier of funded robotics startups, right behind Figure AI and alongside players like UBTech Robotics and Agility Robotics. CEO Jeff Cardenas calls it a “strong vote of confidence” in the vision of robots that work alongside humans as collaborators — not just tools — and says new Apollo updates are coming soon.
Apollo is already piloting with major partners including Mercedes-Benz, GXO Logistics and Jabil, targeting logistics and manufacturing first, with retail, healthcare and eventually the home on the roadmap. Through a partnership with Google DeepMind, Apollo is even learning practical home skills like sorting laundry and packing lunches — small tasks that hint at a much bigger long-term vision.
Cardenas once told me humanoid robotics is the “space race” of our time — and whoever wins could control a gigantic new labor market. With China fielding more than a hundred competitors and U.S. investment consolidating into a handful of heavily funded players, this is quickly becoming both an industrial and geopolitical story.
“My dream is that for my parents, they’ll have a robot that helps take care of them so that they can age with dignity,” Cardenas told me — a reminder that behind all the billions and factory floors, the end goal may be something deeply human.