Figure AI

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Figure AI
Figure AI, Inc.
Figure AI company logo
File:Figure 02 humanoid robot.jpg
Figure 02 humanoid robot at BMW facility
Type Private
Industry Artificial intelligence
Robotics
Humanoid robots
Founded 2022
Founder Brett Adcock
Headquarters Sunnyvale, California, United States
Key people Brett Adcock (CEO and Founder)
Jerry Pratt (CTO)
Dana Votypka (CFO)
Bob Klunk (COO)
Lee Randaccio (VP of Growth)


Products Figure 01
Figure 02
Figure 03
Helix AI System



Valuation $39.5 billion (October 2025)[1]
Website figure.ai

Figure AI, Inc. is an American robotics company developing AI-powered humanoid robots. Founded in 2022 by serial entrepreneur Brett Adcock, the company aims to create commercially viable autonomous humanoid robots capable of performing complex tasks in manufacturing, logistics, and domestic environments.[2] The company develops general-purpose humanoid robots and Helix, its proprietary vision-language-action (VLA) neural network system for real-world manipulation and control.[3]

History

Founding and Early Development (2022-2023)

Figure AI was founded in 2022 by Brett Adcock, previously known for founding Archer Aviation (which went public in 2021) and Vettery (acquired by Adecco Group for $100 million in 2018).[4] Adcock assembled a team of experts from Boston Dynamics, Tesla, Google DeepMind, Apple, and the Institute for Human & Machine Cognition (IHMC), bringing together over 100 years of combined experience in AI and humanoid robotics.[5]

The company operated in stealth mode for its first year, focusing on rapid prototype development. In 2022, the company introduced Figure 01, a bipedal robot designed for manual labor in logistics and warehousing sectors. The robot achieved dynamic bipedal walking within 12 months of the company's inception, marking one of the fastest development timelines in humanoid robotics history.[6]

Figure emerged from stealth in March 2023, simultaneously announcing its first humanoid robot, Figure 01, and completing initial funding.[7] In May 2023, Figure AI raised $70 million in Series A funding led by Parkway Venture Capital, establishing a $500 million valuation.[8] An extension in July 2023 added $9 million from Intel Capital at a $350 million valuation.[9]

By March 2024, the company had grown to over 80 employees.[10]

Commercial Partnerships and Growth (2024)

On January 18, 2024, Figure announced its first commercial agreement with BMW Manufacturing to deploy general-purpose humanoid robots in automotive manufacturing facilities. The partnership began with a phased approach at BMW's Spartanburg, South Carolina facility.[11] BMW later described the Figure 02 as being "tested successfully" in a real production environment at Plant Spartanburg during 2024, though a subsequent BMW status note indicated that "currently, there are no Figure AI robots at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg" and that no definite timetable was set for deployment, confirming the pilot status of the program.[12]

In February 2024, Figure AI secured $675 million in Series B funding at a $2.6 billion valuation. The investor consortium included:

Simultaneously, Figure announced a collaboration with OpenAI to develop next-generation AI models for humanoid robots, enabling enhanced language processing and reasoning capabilities, along with using Microsoft Azure for AI infrastructure, training, and storage.[14]

In August 2024, Figure unveiled Figure 02, representing significant technological advancement with integrated conversational AI capabilities developed in collaboration with OpenAI.[15]

Recent Developments (2025)

In February 2025, Figure AI terminated its collaboration with OpenAI, with CEO Brett Adcock stating that large language models were becoming "smarter yet more commoditized." The company pivoted to developing proprietary AI models in-house, introducing Helix, an advanced vision-language-action model.[16][17]

On March 15, 2025, Figure introduced BotQ, a high-volume manufacturing facility designed as a state-of-the-art production center capable of producing up to 12,000 humanoid robots annually in its first generation line, with plans to scale to 100,000 robots over four years.[18]

In April 2025, Fortune raised questions about the scope of Figure's BMW pilot versus public claims. Figure disputed the article and indicated legal action.[19]

In September 2025, Figure announced a strategic partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to develop a large-scale humanoid pre-training dataset using real-world environments, creating what they described as the "world's largest humanoid pretraining dataset."[20]

In October 2025, the company closed its Series C funding round, raising over $1 billion at a $39.5 billion post-money valuation, led by Parkway Venture Capital and supported by Brookfield Asset Management, NVIDIA, Macquarie Capital, Intel Capital, and others.[21]

On October 9, 2025, TIME profiled Figure and reported the reveal of Figure 03, its third-generation humanoid robot redesigned for mass production and home use.[22]

Products

Figure 01

Figure 01 was the company's first prototype humanoid robot, introduced in 2022 and publicly demonstrated in 2023. Specifications include:

  • Height: 1.68 meters (5'6")
  • Weight: 60 kilograms (132 lbs)
  • Payload capacity: 20 kilograms (44 lbs)
  • Runtime: 5 hours on a single charge
  • Top speed: 1.2 meters per second
  • Locomotion: Bipedal walking
  • Hands: Five fingers for tool use and fine motor skills[23]

Early demonstrations in 2023 showed the robot walking dynamically and handling boxes in warehouse settings.[24]

Figure 02

Launched in August 2024, Figure 02 represented significant technological advancement:[25]

  • Height: 1.7 meters
  • Weight: 70 kilograms (155 pounds)
  • Payload capacity: 25 kilograms per hand
  • Runtime: 5-10 hours
  • Features:
    • 6 RGB cameras with onboard vision language model
    • NVIDIA RTX GPU-based modules (3x computing power of Figure 01)
    • 16 degrees of freedom in hands with fourth-generation hand design
    • Microphones and speakers for conversational AI
    • Electrically powered with integrated cabling
    • Torso-integrated battery

In March 2024, following the OpenAI partnership announcement, Figure released a demonstration video showing Figure 02 performing complex, non-scripted tasks based on verbal commands, including conversation, object identification and retrieval, and explaining its reasoning for each action.[26]

Figure Robot Model Comparison
Model Release Date Height Weight Payload Runtime Key Features
Figure 01 2022 1.68m (5'6") 60kg (132 lbs) 20kg (44 lbs) 5 hours First bipedal prototype, five-finger hands
Figure 02 August 2024 1.7m 70kg (155 lbs) 25kg per hand 5-10 hours 6 cameras, conversational AI, 16 DoF hands
Helix February 2025 N/A N/A N/A N/A 35 DoF, dual robot control, VLA system
Figure 03 October 2025 <Figure 02 9% less than Figure 02 N/A Continuous with wireless charging Mass production ready, home-safe design

Figure 03

Figure 03, announced October 9, 2025, represents a complete hardware and software redesign for mass production and safe home use:[27]

Technical specifications:

  • 9% reduction in mass and volume compared to Figure 02
  • Double frame rate, quarter latency camera system
  • 60% wider field of view per camera
  • Embedded palm cameras
  • Tactile sensors detecting forces as small as 3 grams
  • UN38.3-certified battery with multiple safety layers
  • 2kW wireless inductive charging through feet coils
  • 10 Gbps mmWave data offload capability

Safety features for home use:

  • Multi-density foam coverings
  • Soft textile exteriors (washable, removable)
  • Enhanced audio system (2x speaker size, 4x power)
  • Improved microphone positioning for natural conversation

Helix AI System

Helix is Figure's proprietary vision-language-action (VLA) neural network system introduced in February 2025.[28]

Key capabilities:

  • 35 degrees of freedom including human-like wrists, hands, and fingers
  • Dual robot control and collaboration
  • Two-tier processing architecture:
    • System 2: High-level planning at 7-9 Hz
    • System 1: Low-level control at 200 Hz
  • Natural language command processing
  • Object recognition and manipulation without prior training
  • "Pixels-to-actions" learned manipulation
  • Capability to pick up nearly any small household object, even unseen ones
  • Performance of package manipulation and triaging at near human-level speeds

Manufacturing

BotQ Facility

BotQ is Figure's dedicated manufacturing facility designed for high-volume humanoid robot production, announced March 15, 2025:[29]

BotQ Manufacturing Capabilities
Metric Capacity
Initial annual production 12,000 robots
4-year target 100,000 robots
Actuator production capacity 3,000,000 units (4 years)
Manufacturing processes Injection molding, die-casting, metal injection molding, stamping
Part production time reduction From 1 week to <20 seconds

The facility features:

Partnerships and Deployments

BMW Partnership

Figure's partnership with BMW represents the first commercial deployment of humanoid robots in automotive manufacturing. The collaboration includes:[30]

  • Initial deployment at BMW's Spartanburg, South Carolina facility
  • Tasks performed:
    • Sheet metal part insertion
    • Fixture placement
    • Material handling
    • Body shop operations
  • Performance improvements reported:
    • 400% speed increase
    • 7x improvement in success rate
    • 1,000 operations per day capacity

Other Partnerships

  • Microsoft Azure: AI infrastructure, training, and storage[31]
  • UPS: Logistics deployment (announced 2024)[32]
  • Brookfield Asset Management (2025): Partnership to build diverse real-world dataset for humanoid pre-training, scaling AI infrastructure[33]
  • Additional unnamed major customer for logistics operations[34]

Technology

Figure AI's technology integrates advanced AI with robotic hardware to create autonomous humanoids. Key innovations include:

  • Helix VLA: A multimodal AI model combining vision, language, and action for real-time decision-making and learning from human demonstrations[35]
  • Sensory Systems: High-resolution cameras, tactile sensors, and microphones enabling precise manipulation and interaction
  • Compute Power: Onboard GPUs for efficient inference, allowing independent operation without constant cloud reliance
  • Learning Approach: Robots learn from video data and real-world interactions, improving adaptability in unstructured environments like homes
  • End-to-end AI training: Robots learn tasks holistically rather than through scripted programming

Funding and Investors

Figure AI Funding History
Round Date Amount Valuation Lead Investors
Seed 2022 ~$100M N/A Bold Capital Partners
Series A May 2023 $70M $500M Parkway Venture Capital
Series A Extension July 2023 $9M $350M Intel Capital
Series B February 2024 $675M $2.6B Microsoft, OpenAI, NVIDIA, Jeff Bezos
Series C October 2025 >$1B $39.5B Parkway VC, Brookfield, NVIDIA

Total funding exceeds $1.854 billion as of October 2025.[36]

Notable investors include:[37]

Leadership

Brett Adcock (Founder and CEO)

Brett Adcock (born April 6, 1986) is an American technology entrepreneur and billionaire. Prior to Figure AI, he founded:[38]

  • Vettery (2013) - Online recruiting marketplace acquired by Adecco Group for $100 million in 2018
  • Archer Aviation (2018) - eVTOL aircraft company, public on NYSE (ACHR) at $2.7 billion valuation
  • Cover (2023) - AI security company for weapon detection in schools

Adcock's vision for Figure is to make labor optional by providing every human with a personal humanoid robot, starting with industrial applications and expanding to home use. As of June 2024, Forbes estimates Adcock's net worth at $1.4 billion.[39]

Key Executives

  • Jerry Pratt - Chief Technology Officer[40]
  • Dana Votypka - Chief Financial Officer[41]
  • Bob Klunk - Chief Operating Officer[42]
  • Lee Randaccio - Vice President of Growth[43]

Competition

Figure AI operates in the rapidly growing humanoid robotics market, competing with:[44]

Major Humanoid Robot Companies
Company Robot Market Focus Notable Features
Tesla Optimus Manufacturing Target: 10,000 units by end of 2025
Agility Robotics Digit Warehousing First US mass production facility (10,000/year)
1X Technologies NEO Gamma Home use Focus on domestic applications
Apptronik Apollo Manufacturing Tested by Mercedes-Benz
Boston Dynamics Atlas Industrial Partnership with Hyundai
Unitree Robotics Various Multiple sectors Chinese market leader

Market Outlook

Investment firm ARK Invest estimates the humanoid robotics market could reach trillions of dollars in value.[45] Goldman Sachs projects the robotics market to reach $38 billion by 2035.[46]

Figure AI's CEO Brett Adcock stated: "In the next 10 years, maybe under 10 years, the biggest company in the world will be a humanoid robot company. Every home will have a humanoid."[47]

Recognition

  • TIME Magazine named Figure 03 one of the Best Inventions of 2025[48]
  • Brett Adcock named to TIME's 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024[49]
  • RBR50 Innovation Award 2024 for rapid development progress, noting Figure "builds working humanoid within 1 year"[50]

Reception and Coverage

Media coverage has highlighted both the rapid progress and the challenges facing general-purpose humanoids. In April 2025, Fortune raised questions about the scope of Figure's BMW pilot versus public claims; BMW described limited, off-hours trials during that period, while Figure disputed the article and indicated legal action.[51] A subsequent TIME feature in October 2025 profiled the company's long-term consumer ambitions and the debate over data-driven training, dexterity, safety, and societal impacts.[52]

See Also

References

  1. ↑ "Figure Exceeds $1B in Series C Funding at $39B Post-Money Valuation". Figure AI. 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/series-c.
  2. ↑ Brett Adcock (May 20, 2022). "Master Plan". Figure AI. https://www.figure.ai/master-plan.
  3. ↑ "Helix: A Vision-Language-Action Model for Generalist Humanoid Control". Figure AI. February 20, 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/helix.
  4. ↑ "Brett Adcock - Wikipedia". August 30, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brett_Adcock.
  5. ↑ "Figure's Humanoid Robot Gets a Voice and a Brain From OpenAI". IEEE Spectrum. March 13, 2024. https://spectrum.ieee.org/figure-robot-openai.
  6. ↑ "Figure AI builds working humanoid within 1 year". The Robot Report. 2024. https://www.therobotreport.com/rbr50-company-2024/figure-ai-builds-working-humanoid-within-1-year/.
  7. ↑ "Figure Emerges from Stealth to Reveal the World's First Commercially Viable General Purpose Humanoid Robot". Business Wire. March 2, 2023. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230302005404/en/Figure-Emerges-from-Stealth-to-Reveal-the-World%E2%80%99s-First-Commercially-Viable-General-Purpose-Humanoid-Robot.
  8. ↑ "Figure - Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding". Crunchbase. https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/figure-b5dc.
  9. ↑ "Figure - Series A Extension". Crunchbase. July 2023. https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/figure-b5dc.
  10. ↑ "Figure's Humanoid Robot Gets a Voice and a Brain From OpenAI". IEEE Spectrum. March 13, 2024. https://spectrum.ieee.org/figure-robot-openai.
  11. ↑ "Figure announces commercial agreement with BMW Manufacturing to bring general purpose robots into automotive production". PR Newswire. January 18, 2024. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/figure-announces-commercial-agreement-with-bmw-manufacturing-to-bring-general-purpose-robots-into-automotive-production-302036263.html.
  12. ↑ "Successful test of humanoid robots at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg". BMW Group Press. https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/usa/article/detail/T0444268EN_US/successful-test-of-humanoid-robots-at-bmw-group-plant-spartanburg.
  13. ↑ "Figure Raises $675M at $2.6B Valuation and Signs Collaboration Agreement with OpenAI". PR Newswire. February 29, 2024. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/figure-raises-675m-at-2-6b-valuation-and-signs-collaboration-agreement-with-openai-302074897.html.
  14. ↑ "Figure Announces Collaboration With OpenAI To Develop Next Generation AI For Humanoid Robots". Figure AI. February 29, 2024. https://www.figure.ai/news/figure-announces-collaboration-with-openai.
  15. ↑ "Figure Unveils Next-Gen Conversational Humanoid Robot". NVIDIA Blog. August 8, 2024. https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/figure-humanoid-robot-autonomous/.
  16. ↑ "Figure drops OpenAI in favor of in-house models". TechCrunch. February 4, 2025. https://techcrunch.com/2025/02/04/figure-drops-openai-in-favor-of-in-house-models/.
  17. ↑ "Helix: A Vision-Language-Action Model for Generalist Humanoid Robots". Figure AI. February 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/helix.
  18. ↑ "BotQ: A High-Volume Manufacturing Facility for Humanoid Robots". Figure AI. March 15, 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/botq.
  19. ↑ "Is the CEO of the heavily funded humanoid robot startup Figure AI exaggerating his startup's work with BMW?". Fortune. April 6, 2025. https://fortune.com/2025/04/06/figure-ai-bmw-humanoid-robot-partnership-details-reality-exaggeration/.
  20. ↑ "Figure Announces Strategic Partnership with Brookfield to Scale AI Infrastructure". PR Newswire. September 2025. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/figure-announces-strategic-partnership-with-brookfield-to-scale-ai-infrastructure-and-build-worlds-largest-humanoid-pretraining-dataset-302558414.html.
  21. ↑ "Figure Exceeds $1B in Series C Funding at $39B Post-Money Valuation". Figure AI. October 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/series-c.
  22. ↑ "Figure 03 Is The Robot in Your Kitchen". TIME. October 9, 2025. https://time.com/7324233/figure-03-robot-humanoid-reveal/.
  23. ↑ "Figure 01 Specifications". QVIRO. https://qviro.com/product/figure/figure-02/specifications.
  24. ↑ "Figure 01 First Steps". Figure AI. August 29, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8aMXRCjeCo.
  25. ↑ "Figure Unveils Next-Gen Conversational Humanoid Robot". NVIDIA Blog. August 8, 2024. https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/figure-humanoid-robot-autonomous/.
  26. ↑ "Figure 01 + OpenAI". Figure AI. March 13, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sq1QZB5baNw.
  27. ↑ "Introducing Figure 03". Figure AI. October 9, 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/introducing-figure-03.
  28. ↑ "Helix AI system capabilities and specifications". Figure AI. February 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/helix.
  29. ↑ "BotQ Manufacturing Facility". Figure AI. March 15, 2025. https://www.figure.ai/news/botq.
  30. ↑ "AI-Powered Production: BMW's Figure 02 Humanoid Robot". July 24, 2025. https://steelindustry.news/ai-powered-production-bmws-figure-02-humanoid-robot-sets-new-industry-standard/.
  31. ↑ "Microsoft Azure Partnership". PR Newswire. February 29, 2024. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/figure-raises-675m-at-2-6b-valuation-and-signs-collaboration-agreement-with-openai-302074897.html.
  32. ↑ "5 Ways to Invest in Figure AI Stock". July 8, 2025. https://stockanalysis.com/article/invest-in-figure-ai-stock/.
  33. ↑ "Brookfield strategic partnership announcement". PR Newswire. September 2025. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/figure-announces-strategic-partnership-with-brookfield-302558414.html.
  34. ↑ "Figure AI's BotQ Robot Factory". July 5, 2025. https://mikekalil.com/blog/figure-ai-botq-factory/.
  35. ↑ "Watch: Figure 03 – The Model T of robots?". New Atlas. 2025. https://newatlas.com/ai-humanoids/watch-figure-03-model-t-robots/.
  36. ↑ "Figure Total Funding". Crunchbase. https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/figure-b5dc.
  37. ↑ "Investment Landscape of Figure AI". Foreign Affairs Forum. February 22, 2025. https://www.faf.ae/home/2025/2/22/investment-landscape-of-figure-ai-a-comprehensive-analysis-of-key-investors-and-strategic-funding-rounds.
  38. ↑ "Brett Adcock Biography". Brett Adcock. https://www.brettadcock.com/bio.
  39. ↑ "Brett Adcock Forbes Profile". Forbes. June 2024. https://www.forbes.com/profile/brett-adcock/.
  40. ↑ "Figure CEO and Key Executive Team". Craft.co. https://craft.co/figure-ai/executives.
  41. ↑ "Figure Executive Team". Craft.co. https://craft.co/figure-ai/executives.
  42. ↑ "Figure Executive Team". Craft.co. https://craft.co/figure-ai/executives.
  43. ↑ "Figure CEO and Key Executive Team". Craft.co. https://craft.co/figure-ai/executives.
  44. ↑ "BMW tests Figure 02 humanoid on production line". The Robot Report. August 7, 2024. https://www.therobotreport.com/bmw-tests-figure-02-humanoid-on-production-line/.
  45. ↑ "Figure AI's Journey to Robotics Dominance". Unite.AI. March 18, 2024. https://www.unite.ai/figure-ais-journey-to-robotics-dominance-with-bmw-microsoft-and-openai-support/.
  46. ↑ "Invest in Figure AI: Private Investment Guide". TSG Invest. April 29, 2025. https://tsginvest.com/figure-ai/.
  47. ↑ "Brett Adcock: The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024". TIME. September 5, 2024. https://time.com/7012726/brett-adcock/.
  48. ↑ "Figure 03: The Best Inventions of 2025". TIME. October 9, 2025. https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2025/7318493/figure-03/.
  49. ↑ "Brett Adcock: The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024". TIME. September 5, 2024. https://time.com/7012726/brett-adcock/.
  50. ↑ "Figure AI won a 2024 RBR50 Innovation Award". The Robot Report. 2024. https://www.therobotreport.com/rbr50-company-2024/figure-ai-builds-working-humanoid-within-1-year/.
  51. ↑ "Figure v. Fortune". Ottomate. April 29, 2025. https://www.ottomate.news/p/figure-v-fortune.
  52. ↑ "The Robot in Your Kitchen". TIME. October 9, 2025. https://time.com/7324233/figure-03-robot-humanoid-reveal/.

External Links

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