Agile Robots raises $500 million led by SoftBank at $8.5B value

In short: Agile Robots raised $500 million in a funding round led by SoftBank, valuing the German robotics company at $8.5 billion.

What happened

Agile Robots said it has raised $500 million from investors in a new funding round. SoftBank led the round, and Nvidia was also among the investors.

The deal values Agile Robots at $8.5 billion. Founder Zhaopeng Chen said the company will use the money to expand in the United States, increase production in Germany, and pursue new markets.

Agile Robots builds robots for industrial work, like tasks in factories and warehouses. The company says its robots use AI, meaning software that helps machines make decisions, like a driver-assist system helps a car react to what it sees.

The company has also worked with Google DeepMind, a well-known AI research group. With this new round, Agile Robots has reportedly raised about $2 billion in total funding so far.

Why it matters

More money for industrial robots can speed up how quickly they show up in factories and other workplaces. For regular people, that can affect the cost and availability of products, and it can also change the kinds of jobs companies hire for, with more focus on operating, maintaining, and supervising machines.

Source: NYTimes