This Week's Good ReadsForbes — Amazon & Nvidia Backing 8 AI & Robotics Startups to Unlock a Multi-Trillion-Dollar Opportunity

‍John Koetsier spotlights a new “physical AI” push—Amazon (AWS Startups) and Nvidia (Inception) are backing eight robotics startups via a MassRobotics fellowship to speed real-world deployments across industries. Read the piece.

‍Forbes — When Robots Learn: The Rise of Polyfunctional, Intelligent Automation

Peter Bendor-Samuel outlines how AI-enabled, “polyfunctional” robots are moving beyond single-purpose automation—learning new tasks, adapting on the fly, and reshaping operations and ROI. Read the commentary.

FT/Nikkei Asia explore America’s reindustrialisation drive: massive AI/semiconductor build-outs collide with a skilled-worker shortfall, while factories prep more automation (even humanoids on AI-server lines), raising “jobless growth” questions. Read the newsletter.

Sifted — This Startup Is Using Bat-Like Sensors to Make Robots Safe

Oslo-based Sonair is commercialising 3D ultrasonic “ADAR” sensors that give robots bat-style echolocation; with 40 paying pilots and eyes on humanoids, the aim is safer human-robot collaboration without pricey lidar. Dive into the profile.

Robotics Companies Funding

• Terranova – $7M, Seed round (Nov 10, 2025), co-led by Outlander and Congruent Ventures (PitchBook). Terraforming robots that lift subsided land to clear flood zones.
• SAIA Agrobotics – €10M, Series A (Oct 28, 2025), led by Check24 Impact; participants include the EIC Fund, Navus Ventures and Oost NL (PitchBook). “Inverted greenhouse” where plants travel to stationary robots for scanning, deleafing and harvest.
• Cornerstone Robotics – US$200M, Undisclosed growth round (Nov 10, 2025); lead undisclosed, participants include Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC), Qiming Venture Partners, Gaorong Capital and BridgeOne Capital (PitchBook). Surgical robotics maker of the Sentire endoscopic system.
• Partner Robotics – Amount undisclosed (eight-figure RMB), Series A (Nov 10, 2025), led by China Growth Capital (PitchBook). Construction-site robots, incl. P900 tile-laying and L3000 scribing systems.
• Miko – $10.5M, Strategic round (Nov 7, 2025), led by iHeartMedia (PitchBook). AI companion robots for kids with global retail/content partnerships.
• Sovato – Undisclosed (brings total funding to $41M), Series B (Nov 4, 2025), led by Beringea (PitchBook). Robot-agnostic platform for remote robotic surgery (telesurgery).
• Poseidon Aerospace – $11M, Seed (Nov 5, 2025), led by Tamarack Global (PitchBook). Unmanned cargo aircraft (Egret STOL; Heron seaplane) targeting 2-ton payloads, 1,500-mile range.
• Sunflower Labs – $16M, Series B (Nov 4, 2025), led by Sequoia Capital (PitchBook). Autonomous “drone-in-a-box” security system (Beehive) with BVLOS approvals.
• HowToRobot – $75,000, Strategic investment (pending close) (Nov 4, 2025), lead investor: Humanoid Global (PitchBook). Vendor-independent marketplace and advisory for industrial automation.
• Hullbot – $16M, Series A (Nov 4, 2025), led by Regeneration VC (PitchBook). Autonomous hull-cleaning robots reducing fuel burn and emissions for fleets.

Robotics News

• Samsung confirms humanoid robot program with “provider and customer” strategy — Exec Oh Jun-ho says Samsung will both build and use humanoids in its own factories, with a prototype “seen soon” after ISR 2025 remarks. Humanoids Daily
• Sweetgreen agrees to sell Spyce robotics unit to Wonder for $186.4M — The salad chain will divest its Infinite Kitchen tech; 38 Spyce engineers will join Wonder as Sweetgreen refocuses on core priorities. Verdict Food Service
• OpenMind & RoboStore unveil humanoid-robot curriculum for universities — Program pairs OpenMind’s OM1 robotics OS with Unitree G1 hardware to standardize teaching; RoboStore cites adoption across 100+ institutions. SiliconANGLE
• Nvidia joins India’s $12B deep-tech push for AI, robotics, and chips — Becomes a founding member of the India Deep Tech Alliance, pledging mentorship and tech support alongside the government’s new funding initiative. Asia Financial
• MIT team teaches robots to rapidly map large environments — A submap-stitching, learning-plus-geometry approach enables fast, accurate 3D reconstructions for search-and-rescue and XR without special camera calibration. MIT News
• K-Scale Labs cancels K-Bot orders and open-sources its IP — After failed fundraising, the YC-backed humanoid startup refunds deposits and releases hardware (CERN-OHL-S-2.0) and software (MIT) for community use. Humanoids Daily
• Rivian spins out ‘Mind Robotics’ for industrial AI & automation — New venture aims to apply Rivian operations data to industrial robotics; has raised a $115M seed led by Eclipse. TechCrunch
• Generalist AI debuts GEN-0 embodied foundation models — Claims scaling laws in robotics with 270k+ hours of real-world manipulation data and a “Harmonic Reasoning” paradigm that couples thinking and acting. Generalist AI
• Nauticus certifies ToolKITT autonomy on light work-class ROVs — First paid commercial project on a retrofitted third-party ROV shows software’s ability to upgrade legacy offshore vehicles. Nauticus Robotics (Press Release)
• AgiBot reports first real-world RL deployment in industrial robotics — RW-RL system trained on-line at a Longcheer pilot line; company highlights minutes-level training and robust adaptation for precision manufacturing. PR Newswire UK

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