Agility Robotics reportedly raising $400M for humanoid warehouse robots

Agility Robotics, the Salem, Ore.-based company known for its Digit bipedal humanoid warehouse robot, is reportedly raising $400 million in new funding according to a report Tuesday by The Information.

The report cited a person who has seen the term sheet, which put Agility’s pre-investment valuation at $1.75 billion. The venture arm of private equity firm WP Global is leading the fundraising, with participation from SoftBank, according to The Information.

An Agility spokesperson told GeekWire that the company was not commenting at this time on the funding report.

Peggy Johnson, the former Microsoft executive who stepped down as Magic Leap CEO in 2023, has been leading Agility as CEO for the past year.

In a news release Monday, Agility announced new capabilities and advancements that expand the work Digit is able to perform. They include expanded battery capabilities; autonomous docking onto charging stations; additional safety features; new robust limbs and end effectors, giving Digit a wider range of grasping angles; and streamlined manufacturing of Digit.

Amazon previously invested in Agility in a $150 million round through its Industrial Innovation Fund, a billion-dollar venture capital fund that backs different forms of supply chain technology.

GeekWire saw Digit in action at an Amazon warehouse south of Seattle, where the robots were being tested for tote consolidation, a process that involved organizing and repositioning storage containers after all the inventory has been removed. Digit can autonomously sense, grasp, and move bulk objects such as the totes, while navigating an environment originally designed for humans.

Digit stands at a height of 5 feet 9 inches tall and can handle payloads up to 35 pounds. Its head includes internal antennas and LED eyes that blink to indicate which way it’s turning. The robot has multiple arrays of cameras and sensors, and a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) system to scan its environment.

It has two robotic arms, and while its legs may look like those of a large bird, such as an ostrich or crane, the company says they reflect decades of research into how humans and animals walk, allowing it to navigate a variety of terrains.

In September 2023, Agility announced a Salem manufacturing facility that it said would ultimately be able to produce more than 10,000 robots a year.

Other startups such as 1X, Cobot and Figure AI are among companies leading a surge of interest and investment around humanoid robots, according to Pitchbook.

An Oregon State University spinoff, Agility is No. 6 on the GeekWire 200 ranked index of Pacific Northwest startups.