Humanoid robot funding in 2025 and 2026: the big rounds and the gap to shipments

Humanoid and general-purpose robot companies raised billions of dollars from September 2025 to October 2026. Among the rounds covered here, the biggest include Figure (more than $1 billion at a $39 billion valuation), Skild AI ($1.4 billion) and Neura Robotics ($1.4 billion), with Apptronik's Series A at $935 million. Crunchbase puts robotics funding above its 2021 peak. Shipments are still small by comparison, and few companies publish them.

This article tallies the main rounds announced in company releases and reported by Crunchbase News and TechCrunch. It then compares the money with what has actually been built and delivered. It is a market overview, not investment advice.

The sector totals: what Crunchbase counts

The most widely quoted totals come from Crunchbase, and they cover robotics start-ups in general, not humanoids only. In February 2026 Crunchbase News reported that robotics start-ups raised nearly $14 billion in 2025. That compares with $8.2 billion in 2024 and $13.1 billion in 2021, the previous peak year.

The pace then rose again. In its third-quarter 2026 analysis, published on 27 October 2026, Crunchbase put global venture funding to robotics start-ups at $9.9 billion for Q3 alone. That is more than double the $4.3 billion invested in Q3 2025. The 185% rise in the article's headline refers, in the text, to the first three quarters of 2026 compared with the same period of 2025, not to Q3 alone. Year to date (January to September 2026), China accounted for $13.2 billion of robotics investment and the United States for $12.1 billion.

Two cautions apply. First, these figures include software companies building robot "brains", warehouse automation and other robots, so they are not a humanoid-only number. Crunchbase does not publish a humanoid-specific total in these articles. Second, different databases classify companies differently, so totals from other providers will not match exactly.

The largest rounds in the United States

Figure: over $1 billion at $39 billion

On 16 September 2025 Figure announced its Series C: more than $1 billion in committed capital at a $39 billion post-money valuation, led by Parkway Venture Capital, with NVIDIA, Brookfield, Intel Capital, Qualcomm Ventures and others taking part. Figure said the money would go to production at its BotQ factory, GPU infrastructure for its Helix AI model and collecting human video and sensor data. It is the highest valuation for a privately held humanoid maker covered in this round-up.

Apptronik: $935 million across one Series A

Apptronik, the Texas company behind the Apollo humanoid, extended its Series A in February 2026. TechCrunch reported on 11 February 2026 that the $520 million extension brought the round to $935 million, at a post-money valuation of $5.3 billion. Existing backers include Google, Mercedes-Benz and B Capital. The original Series A, announced in February 2025, started at $350 million and grew to $415 million.

Skild AI: $1.4 billion for software, not a humanoid

Skild AI does not build humanoids. It develops a foundation model, which it calls the Skild Brain, intended to control many kinds of robot. Its Series C announcement of 14 January 2026 gave $1.4 billion led by SoftBank, at a valuation of over $14 billion. It is included here because much of the money aimed at humanoids now goes to the software layer rather than the hardware. Our explainer on vision-language-action models covers what this kind of software does.

Agility Robotics: going public through a SPAC

On 30 October 2026 Agility Robotics and Churchill Capital Corp XI announced an expected gross capital raise of about $465 million linked to their merger. Around $164 million is expected from the SPAC trust and about $201 million from a private placement led by Foxconn, plus $100 million already received. The deal still needs Churchill XI shareholder approval at a meeting on 2 November 2026. Closing is planned for 4 November, with Nasdaq trading under "AGLT" from 5 November. Until then it remains a plan rather than a completed listing.

China: many rounds, and listings

Chinese funding is spread across more companies and is increasingly heading towards stock markets. Crunchbase reported in May 2026 that China-based robotics companies had raised $5.6 billion across 176 deals by mid-May. That was already more than the $4.3 billion they raised in all of 2025.

Named rounds in that report include:

• TARS Robotics (Shanghai): a $513 million seed round at a $1.9 billion valuation.
• Spirit AI (Beijing): $435 million across a Series A and an extension, at a $1.5 billion valuation.
• Galaxea AI: $435 million across a Series B and an extension, at a $1.4 billion valuation.
• X Square: a $140 million Series A extension in January and a $293 million Series B in April.
• EngineAI (Shenzhen), maker of the PM01 humanoid: a $200 million Series B at a $1.5 billion valuation.

Crunchbase's October analysis adds two more large Chinese rounds: $900 million for Xpeng Robotics and a $736 million Series C for AI² Robotics. In Europe, it reported $1.4 billion for Germany's Neura Robotics.

The same May report said Unitree had filed for a listing on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in March 2026, and Crunchbase put its target valuation at $3 billion to $7 billion. That range is a press-reported figure, not one this article has confirmed with Unitree. Unitree's filing is one of the few places where a humanoid maker's unit sales are set out in detail. Our article on Unitree's IPO filing goes through those figures.

Valuations versus robots built

The hardest question about these numbers is how they compare with what is actually being produced. Most private humanoid companies do not publish delivery counts. The figures they do publish suggest volumes in the hundreds, not the thousands.

• Figure said on 29 April 2026 that it had built more than 350 Figure 03 robots and had raised its production rate from one per day to one per hour. It did not say how many were deployed with paying customers. Our analysis of Figure 03 footage looks at what the robot has been shown doing.
• Apptronik gave no deployment or shipment numbers in its February 2026 funding announcement, according to TechCrunch's report. Crunchbase News said the company would use the money to ramp up Apollo production and expand its commercial and pilot deployments.
• Agility reports more than $300 million in committed multi-year orders for its next robot, Digit 5. The company itself says this is not current revenue. Deliveries to early-access customers are planned for the first half of 2027, with general availability by the end of 2027. Our report on Digit's warehouse deployments covers what the current model has done.
• Skild AI said its live revenue grew from zero to about $30 million within a few months in 2025. That is small set against a valuation of more than $14 billion.

In other words, investors are mostly paying for expected future demand and for data and AI capabilities, not for current sales. That is normal for early-stage technology, but it means valuations can move sharply if production targets slip. Whether the gap closes depends on production ramps and customer results that have not yet been published, so neither the optimistic nor the sceptical reading can be confirmed today.

The split of spending also matters for anyone outside the industry. Money going into factories means more units over time; money going into AI models, as at Skild AI, means robots that may gradually need less hand-scripting, though demonstrations of that are still mostly controlled.

What this means for event organisers

• Funding headlines do not mean rental availability. Most of these companies focus on industrial pilots and development, not event hire, and Skild AI makes software rather than robots. Check which humanoid robots you can actually hire today before planning around a robot you have seen in the news.
• Robots you can hire are the ones suppliers can buy. Models sold commercially in quantity are the realistic options for events; heavily funded robots in factory pilots are not, until their makers open sales.
• Watch delivery dates, not valuations. Published availability dates, such as Agility's for Digit 5 above, tell you more about when a model might reach events than the size of a funding round does.
• Plan for change. A fast-moving, heavily funded field means models, software and suppliers can change between booking and event day, so confirm the exact robot and software version in writing.

Frequently asked questions

How much did robotics start-ups raise in 2025?

Crunchbase News reported in February 2026 that robotics start-ups raised nearly $14 billion in 2025, up from $8.2 billion in 2024 and above the previous peak of $13.1 billion in 2021. This figure covers robotics in general, including software and non-humanoid robots, so it is not a humanoid-only total. Other data providers classify companies differently and may report different totals.

Which humanoid company has the highest valuation?

Among the private humanoid makers covered here, Figure reported the highest valuation: $39 billion post-money after its Series C of more than $1 billion, announced on 16 September 2025. Skild AI was valued at over $14 billion in January 2026, but it develops robot control software rather than its own humanoid. Valuations of private companies are set in funding rounds and can change considerably at the next round.

How many humanoid robots have these companies actually built?

Most private companies do not publish delivery figures. Figure said in April 2026 that it had built more than 350 Figure 03 robots and was producing one per hour, but it did not say how many were with customers. Apptronik did not disclose deployment numbers in its February 2026 funding announcement. Agility plans first Digit 5 deliveries in the first half of 2027.

Is Agility Robotics now a public company?

Not yet, as of 31 October 2026. Agility and Churchill Capital Corp XI announced on 30 October 2026 that they expect to raise about $465 million through their merger. The deal still needs approval at a Churchill XI shareholder meeting on 2 November 2026. If approved, closing is planned for 4 November and Nasdaq trading under the ticker AGLT from 5 November.

How this article was made: written by the humanoid4rent editorial team with AI assistance; every factual statement was checked against the sources listed below on 2026-10-31. Spotted an error? Write to info@humanoid4rent.com.