OpenAI-backed humanoid robot startup 1X secures $100M

Norwegian AI robotics startup, 1X Technologies, recently secured a $100M funding to bring its second-gen android robot, NEO, to the market. NEO is designed to assist humans in everyday domestic tasks.

• Investor Line-Up: EQT Ventures led the latest equity round, the proceeds of which will be utilized to introduce NEO to the market.

• Valuation Status: The company chose not to disclose its valuation in the round.

• Funding Allocation: Bernt Oivind Bornich, CEO of 1X, stated that the funds would boost their mission to manufacture advanced, safe androids on a commercial scale. The company plans to enhance its manufacturing capabilities to produce hundreds of androids per month and continue hiring new talent.

• Previous Funding: 1X Technologies first grabbed headlines in March last year when it bagged $23.5M in a Series A round from OpenAI Startup Fund I LP and Tiger Global LP.

• Product Offering: 1X's first product, EVE, is an android on two wheels, capable of performing tasks in factories or operating as a patrolling guard. The company's upcoming model, NEO, walks and moves like a human. It can clean and organize at home or operate machinery and handle complex tasks in industrial settings. The company assures that NEO is "safe to work among people".

1X is entering a competitive market of humanoid robot makers, with rivals like Tesla Inc., Sanctuary Cognitive Systems Corp., and Figure AI Inc.