Robotics startup 1X today announced that it has raised $100 million from Samsung Next, EQT Ventures and other institutional investors.

The Series B round also included a secondary sale involving returning backer Sandwater. The Oslo-based investment firm previously participated in 1X’s Series A raise last March, which also included contributions from the OpenAI Startup Fund and Tiger Global. The robot maker has raised a total of $125 million to date.

“From Leonardo da Vinci, to today’s sci-fi, humans have dreamt of humanoid robots for more than 500 years,” said EQT Ventures partner Ted Persson. “The impact of androids joining our human workforce, on our terms, will be transformative (to say the least).”

Norway-based 1X is the developer of EVE, a humanoid robot that travels on a pair of wheels at up to 9.8 miles per hour. The machine is primarily designed for use in logistics facilities and industrial environments such as factories. Furthermore, 1X says that organizations can use it to guard their offices.

The company claims to have designed practically all of EVE’s hardware components in-house. Among the main highlights is the array of internal motors the robot uses to power its movements. Unlike traditional alternatives, those motors don’t include any gears, which 1X says makes EVE more agile and efficient than other humanoid robots.

The internal cables that link the machine’s components with one another are likewise based on a custom design. According to 1X, the cables lower the number of sensors that must be installed in EVE and thereby decrease manufacturing costs. Moreover, the reduced sensor count leaves more space inside the robot’s chassis for other components.

The machine can ferry items between different parts of a logistics facility, opening doors when necessary, and perform certain manufacturing tasks. It’s also capable of taking on more complex, multistep workflows. During one recent test, the robot demonstrated the ability to bake a batch of gingerbread cookies and interact with several kitchen appliances in the process.

EVE is capable of learning new tasks by observing how a human performs them and replicating the workflow. Moreover, the built-in artificial intelligence software can understand natural language instructions. According to 1X, A single human operator may manage the work of up to 15 EVE robots.

The company will use its new funding round to support the EVE deployments of existing customers. More notably, the capital will also finance the development of a second robot called NEO that will be geared towards the consumer market. 1X is positioning it as an “intelligent android assistant” capable of performing household chores.

Unlike EVE, NEO doesn’t travel on wheels but rather walks. It has a slightly lower top speed than 1X’s first robot as well as a shorter battery life. At the same time, NEO features significantly more advanced robotic arms that allow it to perform a wider range of tasks. 

Photo: 1X