Hajra Naz
Money is pouring into humanoid robotics. Investors are spending billions on companies building robots for warehouses, factories, and eventually homes.
The industry is growing fast. New funding rounds are pushing company valuations to record levels. But not every robotics company is making big promises. Agility Robotics is taking a different approach.
While many startups are chasing massive valuations, the company is staying focused on steady growth. It is also preparing to become the first publicly traded humanoid robotics company.
Investors Continue Pouring Money Into Humanoid Robots
The humanoid robotics industry has become one of the hottest areas in technology.
Last week, Shenzhen-based AI2 Robotics raised around $735 million. The funding valued the company at nearly $3 billion. AI2 Robotics develops wheeled humanoid robots for industrial work.
Earlier this year, Austin-based Apptronik secured $935 million in funding. The investment pushed the company’s valuation above $5.5 billion. Apptronik builds humanoid robots for manufacturing and logistics.
Figure AI has attracted even more attention. The San Jose startup said it completed a $1 billion Series C funding round last year. That funding reportedly valued the company at an impressive $39 billion.
The massive investments show that investors strongly believe humanoid robots could become one of the next major technology markets.
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Agility Robotics Chooses a Different Path
While competitors continue raising private funding, Agility Robotics is heading to the public market.
The Oregon-based company recently announced plans to go public through a merger with Churchill Capital Corp XI, a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC).
The deal values Agility Robotics at around $2.5 billion. It is expected to generate more than $620 million in gross proceeds.
The transaction still requires approval from shareholders and the SEC before it can officially close later this year.
If completed, the deal would become the largest capital raise in humanoid robotics history.
A Pioneer in Public Markets
Agility Robotics was founded in 2015 as a spinout from Oregon State University.
The company is based in Salem, Oregon, where it develops two-legged humanoid robots designed for warehouses and factories.
Its public listing would mark an important milestone.
Agility could become the first pure-play humanoid robotics company listed on the public stock market. Until now, most investments in humanoid robotics have been available only through venture capital firms.
Going public would also give investors a rare look inside the financial performance of a robotics company. Most competitors reveal very little about their business or technology.
CEO Peggy Johnson Keeps Expectations Realistic
Peggy Johnson, Agility Robotics’ CEO, has adopted a cautious tone despite the excitement surrounding humanoid robots.
Before joining Agility, Johnson served as Executive Vice President of Business Development at Microsoft. She helped lead Microsoft’s $26 billion acquisition of LinkedIn. She later became CEO of Magic Leap.
During a recent interview, Johnson avoided making bold predictions. She declined to share future financial guidance. She also refused to disclose the production cost of Agility’s flagship robot, Digit.
Whenever questions became speculative, she carefully redirected the conversation toward the company’s current progress.
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Why Agility Chose a SPAC Instead of Another Funding Round
Johnson believes timing played a major role in choosing a SPAC merger. She said becoming the first publicly traded humanoid robotics company gives Agility a significant first-mover advantage.
Rather than waiting for another private investment round, the company wants to capitalize on growing investor interest in robotics. The new funding will also help expand production at Agility’s 70,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Salem.
The company plans to increase robot production and fulfill its growing list of customer orders.
Not Worried About the SPAC Reputation
SPACs developed a poor reputation after many companies that went public during the 2021 boom struggled to meet expectations. Johnson believes Agility can avoid those problems.
She says the company is focused on execution rather than market hype.
Instead of worrying about stock price swings, Agility plans to keep delivering robots to customers and improving its technology.
According to Johnson, the company’s biggest challenge isn’t another robotics startup.
“Our biggest competitor is ourselves,” she said, referring to the speed at which Agility can continue improving its products.
Strong Customer Demand Already Exists
Agility says it already has a healthy business pipeline. Johnson revealed that the company has booked more than $300 million in multi-year revenue.
That represents roughly 1,000 robots deployed under a Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) model. Instead of purchasing robots outright, customers pay a monthly subscription fee.
According to Johnson, every customer in the pipeline has already completed testing and has real deployment plans.
Current customers include:
- GXO Logistics
- Amazon
- Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada
- Schaeffler
- Mercado Libre
Meet Digit: A Robot Built for Warehouses
Agility’s flagship robot is called Digit. Rather than trying to look perfectly human, Digit is designed for one specific purpose. It moves heavy objects inside buildings built for people.
Digit stands about 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighs roughly 160 pounds. One of its most unusual features is its reverse-bending legs, often described as “bird legs.”
This design allows the robot to reach items stored on the floor or high shelves without its knees hitting warehouse racks. Its hands are equally specialized.
Instead of copying the human hand exactly, Digit uses two thumbs and two fingers designed to grip heavy plastic storage bins securely, even while the contents shift during transport.
Powered by Multiple AI Models
Agility doesn’t rely on a single artificial intelligence model. Johnson describes the company as “LLM-agnostic.” Digit can use models like Claude and Gemini to understand instructions. These language models handle what Agility calls the “semantic layer.” They convert natural language commands into actions.
Johnson described one recent test. Engineers scattered different types of trash across the floor. They simply told Digit to “clean up this mess.” The robot correctly sorted each item into the proper waste bins. It even recognized that bubble wrap should not be recycled.
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Physical AI Remains Agility’s Biggest Advantage
While language models receive most of today’s attention, Johnson believes robotics depends on something much harder.
Physical intelligence.
Teaching a robot to balance, walk, lift objects, and safely move around people remains a major technical challenge. Unlike AI companies training on internet data, robotics companies must collect real-world physical experience.
Johnson believes Agility has built one of the industry’s largest collections of operational robotics data. The company has spent more than a decade gathering information from robots working in real environments.
That experience, she says, creates a major competitive advantage.
Safety Comes Before Everything Else
Johnson says safety is one area where Agility stands apart from many competitors. Many robotics startups showcase impressive demonstration videos filmed in controlled environments.
Agility’s robots, however, operate inside active industrial facilities alongside human workers. That requires strict safety certification. Johnson says safety cannot simply be added later.
Every electrical system, mechanical component, and software feature must meet certification requirements from the beginning. Without proper safety engineering, the entire robot would need to be redesigned.
Home Robots Are Still More Than a Decade Away
Despite rapid progress, Johnson does not believe humanoid robots will enter homes anytime soon. She estimates it will take at least another 10 years before home robots become practical.
Factories and warehouses are much easier environments. They have predictable layouts, fixed equipment, and organized workflows. Homes are completely different.
Children, pets, visitors, furniture, and everyday clutter create constantly changing environments. Johnson compared the challenge to autonomous vehicles.
Roads follow traffic rules and predictable patterns. Homes do not. That makes household robotics far more difficult.
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Warehouses Remain the Company’s Top Priority
Although Agility eventually plans to enter the consumer market, warehouses remain its primary focus. Johnson says the labor shortage creates a significant opportunity.
Many experienced warehouse workers are retiring. At the same time, fewer younger workers are willing to take physically demanding jobs.
According to Johnson, more than one million warehouse and factory positions in the United States remain unfilled. Agility believes humanoid robots can help businesses fill those gaps while improving productivity.
For now, the company is concentrating on solving industrial challenges before bringing humanoid robots into everyday homes.
