Robotics Startup Genesis in Talks to Raise About $500 Million

The Genesis AI robot Eno in a lab in Alameda, California.

AI robotics startup Genesis AI is in talks with investors to raise around $500 million in a new funding round, according to people familiar with the efforts.

The fundraising would value Genesis at $3 billion before the new money, the people said, though discussions are ongoing and the amounts could change.

Premji Invest, an existing investor in the company, is in talks to lead the round, two people said. HSG, formerly known as Sequoia Capital China, and Northzone Ventures, both prior backers, are also in talks to invest more capital in this round, some of the people said.

Genesis, Premji, and Northzone declined to comment. HSG did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Genesis is the latest robotics startup capturing investor dollars as VCs pour money into physical AI. It’s competing with the likes of Founders Fund-backed Physical Intelligence, which in March was in talks for funding at an over $11 billion valuation, and SoftBank-backed Skild AI, last valued at over $14 billion.

With offices in Paris and Palo Alto, California, Genesis is building AI models to power robots for complex tasks like factory work and lab testing. Its wheeled robots have human-like hands but stop short of a fully humanoid design.

In June, the startup, which is backed by former Google Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt, unveiled an industrial robot powered by artificial intelligence called Eno. The robot will be capable of reasoning and adapting to different outcomes "beyond predefined tasks," Genesis said, according to previous Bloomberg reporting.

Genesis launched from stealth in July 2025 with a $105 million seed round, co-led by Khosla Ventures and Eclipse Capital, at an undisclosed valuation.