Apptronik raises $520 million to beat Chinese humanoids, Tesla Optimus to market

CNBC is now accepting nominations for the 2026 Disruptor 50 list. Submit a nomination before February 23.In this articleApptronik has raised $520 million in funding at a $5 billion valuation as the startup aims to commercialize its humanoid Apollo robots, potentially beating Chinese competitors and Tesla's Optimus to the market.The new funding, announced on Wednesday, brings Apptronik's series A funding round to $935 million. B Capital, chaired by Howard Morgan, co-led the deal with Google.Located in Austin, Texas, where Tesla is also headquartered, Apptronik is reeling in cash to refine and start producing more of its Apollo humanoids, CEO Jeff Cardenas told CNBC. Early versions of the company's Apollo robots are currently working within designated areas in factories and warehouses run by Apptronik strategic partners, including Mercedes-Benz, GXO Logistics and Jabil.The designated areas are defined by external sensors and so-called light curtains, Cardenas said, meaning an Apollo in the area will pause if a human steps across a boundary. Cardenas said that in the future, the Apollo will be engineered for "collaborative safety," so the humanoids can slow down, stop, or maneuver alongside other people, just as a human would, while performing tasks like transporting components, sorting and lifting.Apptronik's competitors include a wide array of humanoid developers, such as China-based Unitree, Figure, Agility Robotics and 1X. Tesla has grand ambitions with Optimus, one of the reasons it's planning to shell out $20 billion on capex in 2026. Tesla said it has to ramp up spending to start manufacturing its robots and self-driving cars. But in a recent earnings call, CEO Elon Musk said the Optimus humanoids remain in an early, research and development stage.Cardenas said that within the field of automation, the allure of humanoids is their versatility, which allows "one robot to do thousands of tasks, versus a thousand robots doing a single task." From pilot deployments, Apptronik is able to observe its Apollo in action, gather data from its fleet and use that to refine its systems and the way they work. The new funding comes after Apptronik locked in a partnership with Google DeepMind and began working with its Gemini Robotics AI models, which underpin Apollo's capabilities.Apptronik ranked 33rd on the 2025 CNBC Disruptor 50 list. The company began in the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas in 2016, well before Tesla began talking up humanoid robotics. Apptronik now has 300 employees. Cardenas said the company will use some of the fresh capital to expand its footprint in Austin, and open a new office in California later this year, while working to get its robots and facilities ready for mass production.Unlike Musk, who's known for making lofty promises, Cardenas prefers not to make many public predictions about Apollo. He declined to say when the robots will be widely produced and what capabilities they will have when they first ship. Apptronik will reveal more later this year about what its robots will and won't be able to do, Cardenas said.Morgan was more forthcoming about his expectations for the company, and said demand for the Apollo is already apparent. He said he expects orders for $1 billion worth of robots starting in 2027, when he hopes the company will be delivering Apollo in high volumes for roughly $80,000 a year, about the price of a luxury car."Think about a factory worker doing three or four shifts, and on any weekend," Morgan said. "Eighty-thousand is cheap!"Morgan also said he expects Apptronik to hire at least another 200 people in the next year, and that the company needed to lock in the new funds now given the excitement around humanoid robotics. "You do need to have enough so you can be taken seriously by everybody," Morgan said. "Google is spending a lot and we're partnering with them, so we'll get the benefit of that."WATCH: How LG, 1X, Tesla and others plan to bring robots into your homeGot a confidential news tip? We want to hear from you.Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inboxGet this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.© 2026 Versant Media, LLC.

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