The verified answer
As of Oct 2026, DEPLOY verifies Sarcos Robotics: 1 model, 1 deployment across 1 region, $70.0M raised. 7 sources back the record.
CategoryExoskeletons
Overview
Sarcos Robotics (now Palladyne AI, NASDAQ: PDYN) developed the Guardian XO full-body powered exoskeleton and Guardian line of teleoperated robots for industrial, defense, and logistics applications. Founded in 1983 by University of Utah professor Stephen Jacobsen, the company went public via SPAC merger with Rotor Acquisition Corp. in September 2021 (Nasdaq: STRC).
After shipping only two Guardian units by late 2023, Sarcos pivoted from hardware to AI software, rebranding as Palladyne AI in March 2024. The company now sells Palladyne IQ (industrial robot autonomy software), Palladyne Pilot (UAV flight AI), and SwarmOS, with a Palladyne Defense division established in 2025.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- 1 deployment on file
- Active incidents
- None on file
Key facts
HQ
Founded
Now
History
CEO
Products
Pivot (reported, Nov 2023)
Acquisition
USAF (reported, Sep 2023)
Investorssee investors →
Data & sources
Patent documents
6
Web sources
1
7 sources backing this record.View all →
Models (1)
View all models →Sarcos Robotics on the deployment map
View the global map1 verified deployment across 1 region, newest verified Jan 2022. Explore where Sarcos Robotics's robots are operating, by place and type.
View the full Sarcos Robotics deployment record →
Relationships
Explainers
Plain-language answers to the questions people ask about Sarcos Robotics, from DEPLOY’s explainer library. Each is written in the language of the question and cross-checked against this registry.
What is an exoskeleton robot and how does it work?
What is Sarcos Guardian XO and how does it work?
Current leadership (2)
- Denis Garagić CTOSEC-verified
- Ben Wolff CEO & ChairmanSEC-verified
Founders (3)
- Stephen Jacobsensoleno longer at company
- Fraser Smithcofounderno longer at company
- Ben Wolffcofounder
previously at Palladyne AI (formerly Sarcos)
Former / Previously (4)
- Stephen Jacobsen FounderSEC-verified
- Laura Peterson CEO (May 2023–Jan 2024)SEC-verified
- Fraser Smith President & Co-founderSEC-verified
- Kiva Allgood CEO (Dec 2021–May 2023)SEC-verified
Safety record
No incidents on record for Sarcos Robotics.
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →
Operator customers (1)
- Sarcos Robotics1 deployment
Recent coverage
Sarcos Robotics in third-party press
Peers
7 peers across 1 segment. Every Sarcos Robotics competitor derived from shared form-factor and application-domain edges.
exoskeleton(7)
23 companies in this segment · highly_concentrated (HHI 5009.45179584121) · leader Hypershell at 5217%
- Hondaadjacent competitor(reported)weak
- Wandercraftadjacent competitor(reported)weak
- Cyberdynedirect competitor(reported)strong
- Ekso Bionicsdirect competitor(reported)strong
- German Bionicdirect competitor(reported)moderate
- Roam Roboticsdirect competitor(reported)moderate
Financial state
- Total funding
- $70.0M
- Reporting basis
- sec_10k
- Lifecycle stage
- growth
- Counterparty risk class
- elevated
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.
Funding rounds (3)
Sarcos Robotics’s 2 disclosed rounds, $70M in total, oldest to newest.
- IPO2021-09-15
Investors: Rotor Acquisition Corp. (lead), BlackRock
- Series C2020-08-25
$40M
Investors: Rotor Capital (lead)
- Series B2018-09-05
$30M
Investors: Cottonwood Technology Fund (lead), DIG Investment (co_lead)
Patent estate (6)
- US 10,512,583 B2usptograntedgranted 2019-12-24assignee
- US20230101090A1usptopendingassignee
- US10765537B2usptograntedgranted 2020-09-08assignee
- US20220176547A1usptopendingassignee
- US11679511B2usptograntedgranted 2023-06-20assignee
- US11717956B1usptograntedgranted 2023-08-08assignee
Timeline
Every recorded move in Sarcos Robotics’s history, most recent first: funding rounds, partnerships, acquisitions, supply-chain starts, key hires, and press.
Funding roundIPO funding round
2021-09-15IPO
Funding roundSeries C funding round
2020-08-25Series C raising $40000000
Funding roundSeries B funding round
2018-09-05Series B raising $30000000
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Record createdJun 8, 2026
Added to the verified registry
- Deployment verifiedVerifiedJan 1, 2022
Guardian XO at Salt Lake City, USA
Sources (1)
Common questions
What is Sarcos Robotics?
What does Sarcos Robotics make?
Is Sarcos Robotics publicly traded?
Who competes with Sarcos Robotics?
Who is the CEO of Sarcos Robotics?
How can I invest in Sarcos Robotics?
Where is Sarcos Robotics headquartered?
How much funding has Sarcos Robotics raised?
Who owns Sarcos Robotics?
Where does Sarcos Robotics operate robots?
How many robots has Sarcos Robotics deployed?
Is Sarcos Robotics a top robotics company?
Is Sarcos Robotics safe?
Methodology: Verified · 1 source (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-10-12
Verification posture
Verified
Low confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-10-12
Sources by quality tier
- 1
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for Sarcos Robotics.Peer companies
- Gobio Robot6 models
- Fourier Intelligence4 models
- Honda4 models
- Lifeward3 models
- Lockheed Martin3 models
- Wandercraft3 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning Sarcos Robotics from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
ARM Institute names new CTO from Sarcos Robotics to lead tech strategy
Physical AI: Embracing AIs Moment in Robotics
Sarcos Robotics is Now Palladyne AI
Palladyne AI — Wikipedia
Comprehensive history of Sarcos/Palladyne AI: founded 1983 by Stephen Jacobsen, acquired by Raytheon 2007, management buyout 2015, SPAC merger 2021, pivot to AI software 2023,…
Sarcos Robotics is Now Palladyne AI
Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corporation changed its name to Palladyne AI Corp. and its ticker from STRC to PDYN, reflecting its narrowed focus on AI/ML software for robotics.
Utah robotics company Sarcos lays out a new future: Fewer employees, more AI
Utah robotics company Sarcos lays out a new future: Fewer employees, more AI
Sarcos laid off ~150 employees as it pivoted from robotic hardware to AI and machine learning software, with nearly half the cuts in Utah.
News - Steel City Spark explores opportunities at Sarcos Robotics
Less than two years after its opening, a robotics company is shutting down its Pittsburgh facility
Robotics company closing Pittsburgh office, cutting jobs
When Will Sarcos Robotics Stock Make Money from Robots?
Robotics firm Sarcos to go public via $1.3B financing deal
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/sarcos-robotics.md
- RSS feed: /companies/sarcos-robotics/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/1254bae1-3f65-4e82-aef1-2705db533cb5
- Revision history: /companies/sarcos-robotics/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Gobio Robot6 models
- Fourier Intelligence4 models
- Honda4 models
- Lifeward3 models
- Lockheed Martin3 models
- Wandercraft3 models
Video
A robotic arm provides a feeling for what operating Sarcos' Guardian XO exoskeleton is like, effectively reducing weight from 50 lb. to 10 lb.
It won't turn you into Iron Man but this exoskeleton will give you super strength. Learn more: https://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/industrial-robots/sa
Benjamin Stephens is a Ph.D. student in the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. He is originally from Oklahoma, but received his undergraduate deg
The Sarcos Guardian XO full-body, untethered, powered, industrial exoskeleton suit improves human strength and endurance without restricting the operator’s free
A premier surveillance and inspection tool, the Sarcos Guardian® S remote visual inspection robot is fully capable, cost-effective and man-portable, weighing ap
Sarcos Robotics is the world leader in the design, development, and deployment of highly mobile and dexterous robots that combine human intelligence, instinct,
Sarcos Robotics and Delta Airlines was at CES 2020 and demonstrating the Guardian XO Exoskeleton robotic suit. It’s like a mini Avatar robotic suit. #ces2
Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corporation (NASDAQ: STRC and STRCW) designs, develops, and manufactures a broad range of advanced mobile robotic systems that re
Ideally suited for the power sector, the Sarcos Guardian S multi-purpose inspection robot performs first-look visual and sensor-based inspections to reduce down
Sarcos Robotics (NYSE: ROT), which develops robots that augment humans and counts Palantir (NYSE: PLTR), Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) and BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) among
http://www.sarcos.com/
At #WSJTechLive, Nasdaq Chief Digital Officer Sehr Thadhani sat down with some of tech’s biggest innovators. Sarcos Robotics EVP, Chief Product & Marketing Off
What’s your innovation? The Sarcos Guardian Sea Class Underwater Robot delivers human-like manipulation capabilities in complex and often dangerous underwater
With the Sarcos XO robots and humans will work hand-in-hand. Literally.
Heat Index
Serious67/100
A composite of competitive footprint, funding, press velocity, active partnerships, and supply-chain edges. Different from the Intelligence score below (which is per-form-factor productization). Non-robotics companies cap at 25.
Reality vs attention
Sarcos Robotics draws attention at the 94th percentile but verifies reality at the 14th percentile among exoskeletons. Hype Gap +80.4, 2nd widest among exoskeletons.
6-month trend
Analysis
Clean safety record across 1 verified deployment. Deployment footprint remains limited relative to category peers.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
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.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Oct 20, 2026