OpenMind Raises $20M To Build Robots An ‘Intelligence Infrastructure’

Following massive rounds for generative AI and automation, embodied AI is having its VC moment. After all, the somewhat nebulous concept bridges the gap between the two aforementioned buzzy topics. We have robots, we have AI, now how do we get the AI in the robots?

That's a bit glib, of course. As appealing a concept as it might be, robots aren’t learning to adapt to and interact with the real world by plugging into ChatGPT. The task of training complex systems to perform complex tasks with ever shifting variables has kept many researchers busy for decades now. As they find themselves shifting into more entrepreneurial roles, some are betting on a perfect storm of AI and hardware technologies that can finally deliver this promise at scale.

The category is a fun one to watch, due to the variety of different angles startups are using to approach this complex challenge. OpenMind, for instance, has been working on a concept it frames as “intelligence infrastructure.”

Stanford professor turned OpenMind CEO, Jan Liphardt, states, “Today’s robots are trapped in single-vendor ecosystems that limit collaboration and can’t adapt to real-world complexity. OpenMind is the connective tissue the robotics industry has been missing.”

That “connective tissue” arrives in two parts. There’s the “hardware-agnostic” [one of those ‘I’ll believe it when I see it’ claims] OM1 operating system and FABRIC, a protocol designed to share information, identity, and environmental context between robots.

The company writes, “Together, OM1 and FABRIC create an open, secure coordination layer - allowing any robot to install intelligence, verify trust and act within a shared global network.”

Much like robotic learning and general purpose systems, plenty of have worked to crack platform agnosticism. The value in being able to share a massive database of information with different robots regardless of form factor is clear – so, too, are the challenges it presents.

OpenMind may have gotten $20 million closer to those dreams, courtesy of a new round led by Pantera Capital. That money will go toward building out the Silicon Valley AI startup’s engineering team and seeking out additional partners to accelerate its go-to-market.