Company
Apptronik
Austin-based humanoid-robotics company, founded 2016 as a spinout of the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas at Austin.
- Founded
- 2016
- HQ
- Austin, Texas, USA
- Status
- private
- Funding
- $1.9B
- Models
- 3
- Patents
- 2
Verified profile
14
Sources on record
1
Tracked changes
Updated 1 month ago
Last verified change
Overview
Austin-based humanoid-robotics company, founded 2016 as a spinout of the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas at Austin. Its humanoid Apollo (1.7m, 73kg, replaceable battery, modular design) is built for repetitive, physically demanding tasks in logistics, manufacturing, and retail, and is notable for the breadth of its enterprise engagements. Deployments/partnerships: Apollo has simultaneous engagements with Mercedes-Benz (automotive), GXO (logistics), and Jabil (electronics manufacturing, which is also a contract-manufacturing partner), plus Google DeepMind (AI) and NVIDIA (compute): broader multi-industry validation than most single-platform competitors. Financials: In February 2026 Apptronik closed a $520 million Series A extension, bringing its total Series A to over $935 million and total funding to roughly $1 billion, at a ~$5.5 billion valuation. Key investors include Google, Hyundai, Schaeffler, B Capital, and others.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- None on file
- Active incidents
- None on file
DEPLOY Intelligence
Market intelligence for physical AI
Analyst-grade signals, competitive tracking, and investment context across the global physical AI landscape. Launching 2026.
Models (3)
View all models →Current platform
Apollo 2
Second-generation Apptronik humanoid available in bipedal and wheeled configurations, serving primarily as a data collection platform at Robot Park — a 90,000 sq ft facility in Austin, TX developed with Google DeepMind. CEO Jeff Cardenas has described Apollo 2 as still prototype-stage, with Apollo 3 expected to be the first true commercial product. Hundreds of units built as of mid-2026. Data collected feeds Gemini Robotics.
Current platform
Astra
Apptronik's Astra is a bimanual upper-body humanoid for dexterous two-handed manipulation; it uses series-elastic, torque-controlled actuators for compliance and safe human collaboration, and is being tested for supply-chain tasks alongside the company's full-body Apollo robot.
Current platform
Apollo
Apptronik's general-purpose bipedal humanoid designed for industrial tasks such as logistics and manufacturing, with a modular, mass-manufacturable design. Reported pilots in automotive manufacturing.
Compare & explore
Deep analysis from DEPLOY
Relationships
Current leadership (11)
- Jeff Cardenas Co-founder & CEOsecondary-verified
- Nicholas Paine Co-founder & CTOsecondary-verified
- Luis Sentis Co-founder & Scientific AdvisorIR-verified
- Kay Sheils Kingsbury Chief Financial OfficerIR-verified
- Steve ODea Chief Operating OfficerIR-verified
- Barry Phillips Chief Commercial OfficerIR-verified
- Daniel Chu Chief Product OfficerIR-verified
- Kevin Garell SVP Services & SupportIR-verified
- Chirag Shah VP of SoftwareIR-verified
- Dave Perry VP of MarketingIR-verified
- Justin Birtz VP of People OperationsIR-verified
Founders (3)
- Jeff Cardenascofounderfounded 2016-01-01
- Nicholas Painecofounderfounded 2016-01-01
- Luis Sentiscofounderfounded 2016-01-01
Board (3)
- Gordon Daugherty director
- Howard Morgan director
- Greg Steele advisor
Former / Previously (1)
- Brian Read Controllersecondary-verified
Safety record
No incidents on record for Apptronik.
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Operator customers (3)
- GXO Logistics1 deployment
- Jabil Inc.1 deployment
- Mercedes-Benz Group AG1 deployment
Recent coverage
Apptronik in third-party press
Peer companies
- Unitree Robotics9 models
- Boston Dynamics5 models
- AgiBot4 models
- Tesla4 models
- 1X Technologies3 models
- Agility Robotics3 models
Supplied by (3)
Compute / semiconductor
- Texas Instrumentsvia ApolloMotor-control microcontrollers, gate drivers, power-management / analog ICs (functional-safety)supplies
- NVIDIAvia ApolloNVIDIA Jetson onboard compute (+ Project GR00T foundation-model collaboration)co-develops
Mechanical / contract manufacturing
- Jabil Inc.company-levelApollo humanoid (worldwide manufacturing)manufactures-for
Inbound supply edges feeding this company directly or via the models it owns. Same source bar as the outbound view (verified against at least two strong sources).
Financial state
- Reporting basis
- private_reported
- Lifecycle stage
- growth
- Counterparty risk class
- moderate
Each numeric field carries its own basis marker. Aggregators report a number; this surface preserves the source class so verification depth travels with the value.
Partnerships (9)
- GXO x Apptronik with GXO Logisticsdeployment
- Apptronik x Google DeepMind with Google DeepMindtechnology
- Apptronik x Mercedes-Benz with Mercedes-Benzdeployment
- Apptronik x Jabil with Jabilmanufacturing
- Apptronik x Google DeepMind (Gemini Robotics) with Google DeepMindtechnology
- Apptronik Series A (2025) with Google, B Capital, Capital Factoryinvestment
- Jabil x Apptronik (Apollo manufacturing) with Jabil Inc.manufacturing
- Apptronik - Mercedes-Benz (Apollo pilot) with Mercedes-Benz Group AGdeployment
- Mercedes-Benz x Apptronik with Mercedes-Benz Group AGdeployment
Funding rounds (4)
- Series A2026-02-11
$935M(reported)
- Series A extension2026-02-11
$520M(reported) · $5.3B post
Investors: John Deere (strategic), AT&T Ventures (strategic), Qatar Investment Authority (strategic)
- Series A2025-02-01
$350M(reported)
Investors: Google (strategic) (strategic), B Capital, Capital Factory
- Seed2022-06-23
$15M(reported)
Investors: Capital Factory, Grit Ventures, Perot Jain
Patent estate (2)
- US11035743usptograntedassignee
- EP4640379A1epopendingassignee
Sources (12)
- Apptronik — company website · https://apptronik.com/ · 2026-01-01
- Apptronik — Wikipedia · https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apptronik · 2026-01-01
- https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/02/11/3236352/0/en/Apptronik-Closes-Over-935-Million-Series-A-with-New-520-Million-Extension-Round.html
- https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/11/apptronik-raises-520-million-at-5-billion-valuation-for-apollo-robot.html
- https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2025/02/13/3025687/0/en/Apptronik-Raises-350-Million-to-Scale-Production-of-AI-Powered-Humanoid-Robots-and-Meet-Significant-Customer-Demand.html
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/apptronik-and-mercedes-benz-enter-commercial-agreement-that-will-pilot-apptroniks-apollo-humanoid-robot-in-mercedes-benz-manufacturing-facilities-302089972.html
- https://techcrunch.com/2025/02/25/apptroniks-humanoid-robots-take-the-first-steps-toward-building-themselves/
- https://techcrunch.com/2024/03/15/mercedes-begins-piloting-apptronik-humanoid-robots/
- https://www.therobotreport.com/apptronik-partners-google-deepmind-advance-humanoid-robots-ai/
- https://www.automationworld.com/factory/robotics/news/55250885/apptronik-and-google-deepmind-robotics-partner-on-humanoid-robots
- https://www.ien.com/product-development/article/22933262/apptronik-raises-350-million-to-scale-humanoid-robot-production
- https://www.manufacturingdive.com/news/mercedes-benz-apptronik-humanoid-robots-apollo-manufacturing/710958/
Market intelligence
Hiring signals
Role composition
Recent openings
- Firmware Engineer - ActuationEngineering
Austin, TX
- Firmware Engineer – HandsEngineering
Austin, TX
- Manufacturing
- Research & R&D
- Senior Hardware Test EngineerEngineering
Austin, TX
- Sr. Software Engineer – Real-Time ControlsEngineering
Sunnyvale, CA
+4 more open roles tracked
Common questions
- What is Apptronik?
- Austin-based humanoid-robotics company, founded 2016 as a spinout of the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas at Austin. Its humanoid Apollo (1.7m, 73kg, replaceable battery, modular design) is built for repetitive, physically demanding tasks in logistics, manufacturing, and retail, and is notable for the breadth of its enterprise engagements.
- Where is Apptronik based?
- Apptronik is based in Austin, Texas, USA.
- When was Apptronik founded?
- Apptronik was founded in 2016.
- What does Apptronik make?
- Apptronik has 3 robot models on the DEPLOY registry: Apollo 2, Astra, Apollo (Apptronik builds both physical robots and the AI that runs them).
- Where does Apptronik operate robots?
- Apptronik is a robot manufacturer and does not directly operate deployments on the DEPLOY registry. Its products are deployed by customer operators; see the company page for the verified deployment record.
- Is Apptronik safe?
- Apptronik has no incidents on record in the DEPLOY registry. This does not constitute a safety guarantee; it reflects the incidents DEPLOY has tracked and verified to date.
Methodology: Verified · 12 sources (3 primary) · last reviewed 2026-07-03
Verification posture
Verified
High confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-07-03
Sources by quality tier
- 4
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
- 3
- primary-company-ir
- Company IR disclosure
- 2
- secondary-industry-publication
- Industry publication
- 1
- knowledge-base
- Knowledge base
- 1
- secondary-established-publication
- Established publication
- 1
- secondary-trade-publication
- Trade publication
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for Apptronik.Peer companies
- Unitree Robotics9 models
- Boston Dynamics5 models
- AgiBot4 models
- Tesla4 models
- 1X Technologies3 models
- Agility Robotics3 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning Apptronik from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
Are Humanoid Robots Ready to Be Deployed?
New Yorker feature: Neo and a dozen other humanoid robots scheduled to hit the market. Experts are nervous about deployment readiness.
Automate 2026 show recap
Editors Steve Crowe, Mike Oitzman, and Sarah Wynn review Automate 2026, analyzing key trends in physical AI, humanoids, and software orchestration. The post Automate 2026 show…
Top 10 robotics developments of June 2026
Humanoid robots made many headlines in June 2026, whether it be for companies going public, new deployments, or hitting production milestones. The post Top 10 robotics…
Apptronik unveils Apollo 2 and a flagship data collection and training facility
Built as a data collection and training platform, Apollo 2 enables continuous learning through deployment, Apptronik said. The post Apptronik unveils Apollo 2 and a flagship data…
Robotics News Roundup - The Robot Report
Latest robotics news from The Robot Report covering development, integration, and use of robotics.
Apptronik launches robot training hub, unveils Apollo 2 humanoid robot
Apptronik unveiled Apollo 2, its next-generation humanoid robot, and launched Robot Park, a robot training hub. Apollo 2 is a modular platform for commercial deployment. First…
Robot Park: Where Apptronik's Apollo Goes to Work
Apptronik launched Robot Park training hub at Automate 2026. Apollo 2 modular humanoid platform. Collecting data for Google Gemini Robotics.
Robot Park: Apptronik's Apollo Goes to Work Training Next Generation
Apptronik launched Robot Park training hub. Apollo 2 collects data for Google Gemini Robotics. Modular platform for commercial deployment.
Apptronik Press Releases: Apollo 2, Robot Park, Mercedes partnership
Apptronik press releases: Apollo 2 humanoid unveiled, Robot Park training facility launched, Mercedes-Benz commercial agreement, Google DeepMind partnership.
Apptronik In The News: Apollo humanoid deployed at Mercedes, Google DeepMind
Apptronik's Apollo humanoid robot standing 6 feet tall, lifting 55 lbs, operating 22 hours/day. Deployed at Mercedes and Google DeepMind.
Physical AI dominates Automate 2026 opening day, humanoids steal show floor
Physical AI dominated Automate 2026's opening day in Chicago. New eight-axis arms, seven-axis cobots, AI-driven systems. Humanoid robots stole the show floor.
Humanoid Robot Forum at Automate 2026 - Chicago June 22-25
Humanoid Robot Forum at Automate 2026 in Chicago. Robotics leaders, engineers, and researchers discussing the future of humanoid technologies.
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/apptronik.md
- RSS feed: /companies/apptronik/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/e7a41cec-45f0-4061-8042-270161a5c06f
- Revision history: /companies/apptronik/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Unitree Robotics9 models
- Boston Dynamics5 models
- AgiBot4 models
- Tesla4 models
- 1X Technologies3 models
- Agility Robotics3 models
DEPLOY Intelligence Score
51.9/ 100
6-month trend
Analysis
Clean safety record across 3 verified deployments. Well-capitalized with $885M raised and recent funding activity. Thin IP estate relative to category peers.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Safety Record
Funding Health
Hiring Signal
Deployment Scale
Market Presence
IP Activity
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
Last computed: Jul 3, 2026
Intelligence layer