Meet An AI Company That Is Building A ‘General Purpose Brain’ For Robots
In the rapidly advancing field of artificial intelligence and robotics, Skild AI is making significant strides. The company has recently secured a remarkable $300 million in Series A funding, elevating their valuation to an impressive $1.5 billion. This successful early-stage funding round was spearheaded by leading venture capital firms such as Lightspeed Venture Partners, Coatue, Softbank Group Corp., and Jeff Bezos’s Bezos Expeditions, with notable contributions from Felicis Ventures, Sequoia, Menlo Ventures, General Catalyst, CRV, Amazon, SV Angel, and Carnegie Mellon University.
The Vision Behind Skild AI
Skild AI’s mission is to develop a universal AI system, termed as a ‘general purpose brain,’ that can be seamlessly integrated into any robot, regardless of its design or intended function. This revolutionary plug-and-play robotic intelligence aims to transform how companies across various industries incorporate AI into their robotic systems, enabling robots to perform a wide range of tasks such as manipulating objects, locomotion, and navigation.
The Recent Funding Round
The $300 million raised in Skild AI’s Series A round underscores the confidence investors have in the company’s vision and technology. This capital infusion will accelerate the development of Skild AI’s foundational model, enhance the AI’s capabilities, and expand its integration into various robotic platforms. The funding will also support the company’s efforts to market its technology globally, positioning Skild AI as a leader in the AI and robotics industry.
Addressing Labor Shortages
Skild AI believes there’s a desperate need for robots in the workforce, citing a massive labor shortage in the U.S., with more than 1.7 million available jobs. The U.S. National Association of Manufacturers forecasts over 2.1 million unfulfilled jobs in the manufacturing sector alone by 2030. Many of these jobs involve repetitive, mundane tasks, and some can be dangerous. Skild AI sees an opportunity for robots to perform these tasks, enhancing safety and efficiency. Skild AI’s ‘general purpose brain’ has the potential to transform multiple sectors:
Manufacturing: In manufacturing, robots equipped with Skild AI’s technology can perform complex assembly tasks, quality control, and even maintenance. The AI’s learning capabilities allow it to adapt to different products and production lines, enhancing efficiency and reducing downtime.
Healthcare: In healthcare, robotic assistants powered by Skild AI can assist with surgeries, patient care, and administrative tasks. The AI’s ability to learn and adapt ensures these robots can handle a variety of tasks and improve patient outcomes.
Logistics and Supply Chain: For logistics and supply chain management, Skild AI enables robots to optimize warehouse operations, manage inventory, and facilitate transportation. The AI’s adaptability allows it to handle different types of goods and logistical challenges, improving overall efficiency.
Addressing Labor Shortages: Skild AI believes there’s a desperate need for robots in the workforce, citing a massive labor shortage in the U.S., with more than 1.7 million available jobs. The U.S. National Association of Manufacturers forecasts over 2.1 million unfulfilled jobs in the manufacturing sector alone by 2030. Many of these jobs involve repetitive, mundane tasks, and some can be dangerous. Skild AI sees an opportunity for robots to perform these tasks, enhancing safety and efficiency.
The Future of Robotics with Skild AI
Looking ahead, Skild AI intends to use the funding from today’s round to continue scaling its foundational robotics AI model while planning for the future commercial deployment of its technology. The company plans to expand its AI, robotics, engineering, operations, and security teams. By enabling robots to safely perform any automated task in any environment, Skild AI can expand the capabilities of robots, democratize their cost, and support the severely understaffed labor market. Their currently have the following job openings: See Job openings at Skid AI
What Skild AI's Investors See in the Company
"Skild AI has achieved massive breakthroughs in a short period, and the belief is that they’re a one-of-a-kind company that could redefine notions of what machines are capable of. Deepak and Abhinav have been catalysts of advancements in robotics, and their innovation around leveraging the core principles of foundation models into the real world puts the industry on the path of general-purpose robotics." - Raviraj Jain, Partner, Lightspeed Venture Partners
"Skild AI has a truly scalable approach to building foundational models for robot manipulation and locomotion. Coatue is thrilled to back their effort to revolutionize robotics, shifting from pre-programmed to dynamic, adaptable robots. This has the potential to disrupt the whole physical economy, bringing robots to hazardous jobs and to sectors suffering huge labor shortages." - Sri Viswanath, General Partner at Coatue and former CTO of Atlassian
"At Felicis, they’ve invested in robotics companies for over 15 years. Skild is viewed as the most visionary robotics company seen, pushing the frontiers of physically-grounded intelligence forward. The model they’re building will execute any task, in any environment, on any hardware. This is seen as one of the most ambitious visions encountered from an early-stage startup - the global workforce seems poised to be fundamentally reshaped by Skild." - Aydin Senkut, Founder and Managing Partner of Felicis Ventures
"A GPT-3 moment is coming to the world of robotics. It will spark a monumental shift that brings advancements similar to what has been seen in the world of digital intelligence, to the physical world. Since partnering with Skild AI at the seed round, there is deep conviction that they are the team to pursue one of the most ambitious visions of the era." - Stephanie Zhan, Partner, Sequoia Capital
