Agile Robots closes Series C financing led by SoftBank
Agile Robots, a leading intelligent robotics company, has announced the completion of a Series C financing with a total investment of US$220 million. The financing exercise is led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, followed by financial investors including but not limited to Chimera Investments under Abu Dhabi Royal Group, GL Ventures, Sequoia China and Linear Capital, and strategic investors including Xiaomi Group, Foxconn Industrial Internet, and Midas. The proceedings from this financing exercise will be mainly used for the company’s product development, mass production and global sales business expansion.
Agile Robots is currently the only unicorn in the intelligent robotics field with a valuation exceeding US$1 billion globally. With the completion of this financing round, Agile Robots become the first intelligent robotics company invested by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 in China.
Founded in 2018, with its headquarters both in Munich, Germany and Beijing, China, Agile Robots is a robotics software platform company with the leading hardware know-how in robotics. With German Aerospace Centre (DLR) providing its technical backbone and core AI, the company is committed to innovating artificial intelligence and robotics and expanding the application of robotics in more fields. DLR is not only the first institute to send intelligent robots into space and perform complex tasks such as human-robot collaboration, but also the first in the world to propose and develop successful force-controlled robots that have been adopted by various industries.
Agile Robots has independently developed and launched software and hardware products such as its operating system AgileCore for the coordination of robots and accessories such as end effectors from different manufactures, its smart force-controlled robot DIANA, its medical robots, humanoid dexterous five-finger hands, and its flexible intelligent platform (FIP). With its unique hardware and software R&D capabilities, Agile Robots has launched its highly disruptive “robotic worker” that serves as smart assistant to all kinds of workers and professionals from different fields to take over mundane or dangerous tasks. As a result, Agile Robots is opening new “blue ocean markets” for intelligent robot applications. Currently, the company has implemented its robots for production in multiple industrial scenarios. Agile Robots’ products have been successfully put into mass production, achieved large-scale applications in medical, industrial (consumer electronics, automotive, jewelry and other precision assembly and manufacturing scenarios), agricultural, education and service fields.
Agile Robots is expanding the market globally. In particular for the Chinese Market, it has completed a strategic blueprint in multiple regions. Further, the company co-operating with a Chinese orthopedic surgery robot listed company, top neurosurgery robot company, multiple Chinese top-tier general and specialist hospitals and several other world leading enterprises (such as an international consumer electronics production giant, international top telecom service provider and world leading electronic equipment manufacturer, amongst others).
Dr. Zhaopeng Chen, the founder of Agile Robots said: “By combining a robotic OS and leading sensitive robots, Agile Robots is seeking a fundamental breakthrough in robotics and to realistically deploy the next generation of robots into intelligent precision assembly and medical treatment, which can only be accomplished by human beings right now.”
Luke Li, Founding Partner of Hillhouse Group, said, “Hillhouse is a long-term investor in Agile Robots, having participated in several of its financing rounds, including the seed round. We were delighted to witness Dr. Zhaopeng Chen’s team achieve multiple breakthroughs in the field of robotics. Agile Robots has developed high-precision force-controlled robots with advanced collision detection and joint-torque control capabilities that can be rapidly deployed and adapted to a variety of application scenarios. These force-controlled robots have the potential to drive revolutionary innovations in industrial robotics applications. Hillhouse’s investment in Agile Robotics stands at the intersection of our longstanding interdisciplinary research in the robotics industry and our research and investment in advanced manufacturing, including in high-end precision equipment, smart robots, alternative energy and new materials. We look forward to Agile Robots’ continuous contribution to the efforts in upgrading the manufacturing sector.
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