By Akash Sriram and Krystal Hu
Dec 8 (Reuters) – Japan’s SoftBank Group and Nvidia are in talks to invest in Skild AI, in a more than $1 billion funding round that could value the maker of foundation models for robots at around $14 billion, according to sources and a term sheet seen by Reuters.
If successful, the funding will be at nearly triple Skild’s valuation from the $4.7 billion it commanded in a $500 million Series B round earlier this year that saw participation from Nvidia, LG’s venture capital arm and Samsung, among others, according to PitchBook data.
Founded in 2023 by former Meta AI researchers and backed by Amazon.com and Lightspeed Venture Partners, Skild is trying to overcome a key hurdle that has slowed the broader deployment of general-purpose machines in factories and homes by developing universal software designed to serve as the brain for robots.
The company focuses on AI models for robots of all form factors rather than building any hardware of its own, and has said its technology uses vast data to teach robots perception and decision-making skills similar to those of humans.
The talks underscore surging investor interest in humanoid robotics firms as advances in artificial intelligence make such robots increasingly capable of performing complex tasks.
Still, experts caution that truly general-purpose robotic applications remain technically challenging and could still be years away from widespread adoption.
Skild AI and SoftBank did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Nvidia declined to comment. The talks remain fluid and some details could change, a source said, adding that the deal is expected to close before Christmas.
SoftBank was impressed by Skild’s technology in pilot projects, a person familiar with the matter said, requesting anonymity as the matter was private.
Robotics is a key part of CEO Masayoshi Son’s plan for SoftBank. The company scooped up the robotics business of Swiss engineering group ABB in a $5.4 billion deal in October.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is pushing to accelerate robotics development through meetings with industry CEOs, as the Trump administration weighs an executive order on robotics next year, Politico reported last week.
Skild AI unveiled its first general-purpose AI model in July, saying the system can adapt to a wide range of environments and tasks from warehouse logistics to household chores.
The company raised $300 million at a $1.5 billion valuation as part of its Series A round last year, which saw investments from Jeff Bezos, SoftBank Group and Khosla Ventures among others.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Krystal Hu in San Francisco; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
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