Physical Intelligence, a San Francisco-based startup, has raised $400 million to develop artificial physical intelligence, aiming to integrate general-purpose AI into the physical world. The funding round, led by Amazon's Jeff Bezos, valued the company at $2.4 billion.
Founded in 2023 by former Google robotics scientist Karol Hausman and others, Physical Intelligence has made significant progress with its robot foundation model, π0 (pi-zero). The model can perform various household tasks, including folding laundry and grocery bagging.
The startup's technology is trained on diverse data and can follow text instructions. However, the company acknowledges that it still needs to enhance reasoning, planning, and safety aspects over the next year.
This investment marks a notable increase from the company's previous valuation of $400 million following a $70 million seed round in March. Bezos has previously invested in other robotic ventures, highlighting his interest in the field.
While Physical Intelligence shares technical details about its model, it has yet to address the ethical implications of generative AI in robotics.