UK-based robotics startup Humanoid has become Europe’s first pure-play humanoid robotics unicorn after scooping up $152 million in a Series A funding round. This brought its valuation to a staggering $1.35 billion and its total funding to $270 million. The round was led by Prime Movers Lab, with participation from Schaeffler, Bosch, and others.

Humanoid crossed the unicorn line barely two years after its foundation in 2024. Humanoid has made high-profile partnerships with Fortune 500 companies, including SAP, NVIDIA, Bosch, and Siemens. 

The startup’s recent landmark agreement with Schaeffler involves the deployment of thousands of robots at manufacturing facilities. On July 21, the startup announced its plans to begin deploying beta robots at customer sites in the fourth quarter of this ​year. The deployment will be across manufacturing, logistics, and retail sectors. 

Klaus Rosenfeld, CEO of Schaeffler AG, said that Schaeffler will help make humanoid robotics an industrial reality. The combination of Schaeffler’s decades-long industrial expertise and Humanoid’s cutting-edge physical AI platform will make this happen, he said. He added, “We are actively backing one of the most exciting frontiers in technology.” 

According to Humanoid, the newly acquired funds will be used to develop its next-generation robotics hardware. It will also be used to expand its proprietary AI software platform, KinetIQ. The capital will support commercial robot deployments at industrial customer sites and launch the mass manufacturing of its wheeled robots. 

Humanoid has also signed an agreement with Bosch to manufacture its HMND 01 humanoid robots for the European market. Bosch will provide engineering expertise in hardware design, production, supply chain, and cost efficiency. The companies have completed a pilot test in Germany. The robots independently moved boxes from a conveyor belt to a cart at a Bosch warehouse 

Humanoid’s founder and CEO, Artem Sokolov, said his company has collected 34,000 robot pre-orders worth $2.4 billion. The deliveries are planned for the coming three years.

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This development shows a growing investor optimism in humanoid robotics manufacturers that address labor shortages. For Humanoid, this means two things. One is it positions it for more practical and rapid commercial deployment. How? The massive funds it secured and its tactical choice of a wheeled design instead of bipedal mechanics. 

The second is that Humanoid is expected to overcome traditional challenges of scaling up for small startups. How? Outsourcing of manufacturing and distribution to established manufacturers. This will help it mass-produce successfully. It will also easily find a market for its products.