Mecka AI has raised $60 million in Series B funding to capture human motion for training humanoid robots, backed by Sequoia, Nvidia, and Microsoft’s M12.
The race to build the next generation of humanoid robots just found its fuel. Mecka AI, a startup born only this year in 2024, closed a $60 million Series B funding round led by Sequoia, with significant backing from Nvidia and Microsoft’s venture fund, M12.
At the center of this move is a singular goal: mirroring the physical world. The startup operates by paying individuals to perform mundane. everyday tasks—making coffee. fixing cars—while strapped with body sensors and smartphones. This harvested human motion data is then funneled into training systems. essentially acting as the digital blueprint for how a robot should interact with reality.
Founded in 2024. the company is positioning itself to do for robotics what firms like Scale AI. Mercor. and Surge have accomplished for Large Language Models. Just as those companies provide the human-generated backbone for LLMs. Mecka AI intends to be the primary supplier for the mechanical bodies currently under development across the industry.
The capital infusion aligns with a valuation of $500 million. a figure that has been circling the startup as it neared this latest round. The massive investment from industry giants like Nvidia and Microsoft signals a shift in focus. as both firms bet heavily on the infrastructure required to make robots capable of fluid. human-like activity.
Investors are currently looking at a crowded landscape. Other players. such as XDOF. are pushing forward in similar territory. with recent talks surrounding a potential Series B round at a $1.2 billion valuation. Meanwhile. established data-labeling platforms like Scale AI and Micro1—which originally cut their teeth on text and language models—are rapidly pivoting their operations to meet the surging demand for robotics data.
The trajectory of these companies reveals a clear shift in artificial intelligence; the focus has moved from teaching software how to write. to teaching machines how to move. By capturing the nuances of a human hand stirring a pot or the specific posture required to repair a vehicle. Mecka AI is attempting to bridge the gap between static code and functional. physical automation.
Mecka AI humanoid robots Sequoia Nvidia M12 AI funding robotics data startup news