Agility Robotics is one of the world’s leading robotics companies. It makes robots designed to work alongside people in logistics and warehouse environments. Amazon recently announced that Agility Robotics is one of the five initial startups benefitting from the company’s $1 billion innovation fund. It means the retail giant is looking at the Oregon State University spinoff as a potential addition to its warehouse robotics arsenal. After all, logistics has become an increasingly important piece of Agility’s go-to-market strategy for its bipedal Digit robot.
This morning, however, the company raised a massive $150 million Series B, including funds from the aforementioned Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund. This time out, however, it was DCVC and Playground Global leading the way for the investment.
Agility is set to make a powerful impact, developing and shipping robots that are built to co-exist seamlessly in our lives. Since Agility’s earliest days, we’ve believed their unique technical approach stands alone in being able to deliver on the promise of practical everyday robots.
Bruce Leak, founding partner – Playground Global
Locomotive and other domains in the focus of Agility
Agility was born out of bipedal locomotion work on a research robot named Cassie. It has continued to impress investors along the way, including names like the Sony Innovation Fund. Ford also famously announced plans to utilize Digit as part of a last-mile delivery strategy. Though Agility’s more recent focus has shifted to unpacking trucks and moving boxes around warehouses. This need has only accelerated during the pandemic.
Unprecedented consumer and corporate demand have created an extraordinary need for robots to support people in the workplace. With this investment, Agility can ramp up the delivery of robots to fill roles where there’s an unmet need.
Damion Shelton – CEO Agility Robotics
The round brings Agility’s funding to $180 million to date. That includes a $20.25 million Series A and an $8 million seed two years prior. In a recent interview, both Leak and Agility CTO Jonathan Hurst pointed out how much the robotics startup has been able to accomplish. That too with a small team and tight margins, delivering Cassie to customers way back in 2018.
This big raise will go toward expanding its operations considerably as it scales to market. In addition to its Oregon and Bay Area offices, it has opened operations in Pittsburgh. All told, Agility is planning to double its headcount by 2024.
