Automation startup Neura Robotics GmbH is raising a funding round worth up to $1.4 billion from a group of prominent investors.

The company detailed today that the consortium includes Amazon.com Inc., Nvidia Corp., Qualcomm Technologies Inc. and cryptocurrency issuer Tether. The round is also expected to draw contributions from outside the tech sector. The European Investment Bank, the European Union’s lending arm, and Belgian research institute imec are among the participants.

Germany-based Neura sells more than a half dozen robots that use onboard artificial intelligence models to navigate their surroundings. The company’s newest system, the 4NE1, is a humanoid robot that can cover 3.1 miles per hour and carry up to 220 pounds. Neura says the robot lends itself to a variety of tasks ranging from folding laundry to assembling cars.

The company offers 4NE1 alongside MiPA, a similarly sized wheeled robot that is mainly geared toward consumer use cases. It navigates with the help of a camera array backed by infrared, ultrasonic and lidar sensors. Users can customize MiPA by attaching modules to a specialized section of its chassis. The robot can be equipped with a backpack, a shelf, a desk and multiple tools. 

Neura competes in the warehouse automation market with a family of merchandise transport systems called the MAV series. The most advanced robot in the lineup, the MAV1500, can carry up to 1.5 tons per trip. The onboard navigation computer uses laser scanners to continuously map out its environment and avoid collisions.

It also offers hardware for manufacturers. The company has developed two robotic arms, LARA and MAiRA, that can pick up 6.6 pounds and 41.8 pounds, respectively. Teaching a factory robot to perform a new task historically requires engineers to write a significant amount of code. Neura provides a visual customization interface that removes the need for manual programming.

“The future of AI will not only live on screens,” said Neura founder and Chief Executive Officer David Reger (pictured). “It will move, interact, learn and work beside us in the real world.”

Neura customers manage their robot fleets using a software platform called Neuraverse. It can create digital twins, virtual replicas of a system that are continuously refreshed with telemetry from the machine on which they’re based. Engineers use virtual twins to refine the configuration of a robot before deploying it. After the initial setup is complete, Neuraverse eases ongoing maintenance tasks such as issuing software updates.

Neura will use some of the proceeds from its funding round to enhance Neuraverse. In addition, it plans to expand its manufacturing capacity and open robot training facilities dubbed Neura Gyms. The hubs will help enterprises the company’s systems to their projects. Neura says that it has “orderbook and strategic deployment pipeline” worth more than $1 billion.

Photo: Neura