Apptronik

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An Austin, Texas humanoid robot company, maker of Apollo, partnered with Google DeepMind.

Apptronik was founded in Austin, Texas in 2016. Founders Jeff Cardenas and Nick Paine came out of the University of Texas at Austin's Human Centered Robotics Lab, whose members had competed in the DARPA Robotics Challenge using NASA's Valkyrie humanoid. The company builds its own electric actuators and unveiled its humanoid, Apollo, in August 2023, targeting repetitive physical work in factories and warehouses such as moving boxes, machine tending, and material feeding; Mercedes-Benz has been piloting it since 2024, alongside partners GXO, Jabil, and NVIDIA. Apptronik partners with Google DeepMind, running Gemini Robotics models on Apollo. On funding, it raised a $350 million Series A in February 2025 (with Google participating), followed by several top-ups; by February 2026 the Series A total reached $935 million at a roughly $5.3 billion post-money valuation. In June 2026 it launched Apollo 2, available with either a bipedal or wheeled base.

ExampleIn a Mercedes-Benz factory pilot, Apollo delivers parts boxes to the assembly line.

Related: Apptronik Apollo · Google DeepMind · Gemini Robotics · NASA Valkyrie (R5) · DARPA Robotics Challenge · Humanoid Robot
Sources: Humanoid robot startup Apptronik has now raised $935M at a $5B+ valuation (TechCrunch)
Apptronik 官网 (Chinese)
As of: 2026-06