SoftBank & NVIDIA Reportedly In Talks to Invest Over $1 Billion into Skild AI

Investment is flowing these days in and out of the AI industry, and this time it’s Skild AI, which is in the position of receiving funds from two big giants: NVIDIA and Japan’s SoftBank Group. Well, that’s according to a Reuters report from earlier today.

Per the report, NVIDIA and SoftBank, combined, are looking to invest more than $1 billion into Skild AI. And, if that happens, Skild AI will be valued at nearly $14 billion. That’s a crazy number for a startup founded in 2023. In case you don’t know, Jeff Bezos is among the driving forces of the startup.

The startup received a combined $300 million in the Series A funding round. Here I am using the term combined because Amazon invested in Skild AI through two channels. First, Jeff Bezos’s personal investment fund and Bezos Expeditions. Next, Jeff Bezos’s personal investment fund, Bezos Expeditions. 

If you keep up with robotics in general, you must have heard about Skild AI. It basically deals with a foundation model for robots. One of the highlights of Sklid AI is that it works on AI models for all-sized robots. Per the report, Skild AI has said that its technology uses a vast amount of data to teach robots’ perception and decision-making skills. Reuters reports that SoftBank group “was impressed by Skild’s technology in pilot projects,” hence the investment talks.  

While the other details about the investment are under wraps, Reuters did mention that some of the terms of the investment could change before it can be finalized. So, when will it finalize, you may ask? If everything remains as it is, the deal should be inked before Christmas. 

So, what do you think, does this deal actually cross the finish line? And if it does, how big a ripple do you see it creating across the robotics industry? Drop your thoughts in the comments below.