Zurich-based robotics company mimic has raised $16 million in an oversubscribed seed round to scale its frontier physical AI technology, enabling robots to perform complex and dexterous tasks that have long been out of reach for traditional automation. The round was led by Elaia and Speedinvest, with participation from Founderful, 1st kind, 10X Founders, 2100 Ventures, and the Sequoia Scout Fund, bringing mimic’s total funding to more than $20 million.
The new investment will accelerate the development of mimic’s foundation AI model for robotics and its humanoid robotic hands, as well as expand deployments with leading players in manufacturing and logistics. The funding positions mimic as a key European player in the global race towards general-purpose robotics.
Meeting the demand for intelligent industrial automation
Across factory floors worldwide, many intricate manual tasks still depend on human skill. Traditional robots excel at repetitive, pre-programmed movements in controlled environments but lack the flexibility and dexterity required for variable real-world applications. This limitation leaves large segments of manufacturing, assembly, and logistics untouched by automation.
As labour shortages deepen and industries move to reshore production amid global uncertainty, the need for versatile, intelligent robotics systems is growing rapidly. While investment in humanoid robotics has surged, driven primarily by companies in the US and China, real-world deployment remains limited due to high costs, safety considerations, and the technical challenge of replicating human dexterity.
“Humanoids are exciting, but there aren’t many industrial scenarios where the full-body form factor truly adds value,” explains Stephan-Daniel Gravert, co-founder and Chief Product Officer at mimic. “Our approach combines AI-driven dexterous robotic hands with proven, off-the-shelf robot arms to deliver equivalent functionality that is simpler, more reliable, and rapidly deployable.”
Building physical AI for real-world dexterity
mimic’s core innovation lies in its physical AI models, AI systems trained on human demonstrations to teach robots fine motor control and adaptive behaviour. Skilled operators wear mimic’s proprietary data collection devices during their daily work, capturing highly detailed movement data directly from live production environments without interrupting operations.
This data is then used to train AI models via imitation learning, enabling mimic’s robotic hands to replicate human technique with precision. The resulting systems allow robots to handle variation, correct their own actions, and adapt to changing conditions, capabilities that are essential for flexible automation in industries designed for human operators.
“Our general-purpose AI models allow us to automate manual labour in ways that were previously impossible,” says Elvis Nava, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer at mimic. “By focusing on human-like dexterity and high-quality human data, we’re competitive at both the foundation model layer and the application layer of robotics AI.”
Driving European leadership in general-purpose robotics
Labour market pressures are accelerating the adoption of advanced robotics across industrial economies. Ageing workforces, rising production costs, and the shift towards regionalised manufacturing are all driving demand for AI-powered automation solutions.
Analysts project that the global humanoid and dexterous robotics market could reach $38 billion by 2035, contributing to a broader robotics market valued between $200 billion and $1 trillion by 2040.
mimic’s technology is already being piloted with Fortune 500 manufacturers, global automotive brands, and leading logistics providers. Its solutions are designed to integrate into existing production environments, unlocking automation for tasks that were previously too variable or delicate for conventional robotics.
Founded in 2024 as a spin-off from ETH Zurich, mimic brings together a multidisciplinary team of 25 engineers, researchers, and operators. The company has also received non-dilutive funding from Switzerland’s federal innovation agency and was selected for the AWS Generative AI Accelerator, which supports early-stage companies applying advanced AI to real-world challenges.
“We’re at an inflection point in robotics where learning-based systems meet industrial needs,” says Stefan Weirich, co-founder and CEO at mimic. “Our mission is to make dexterity deployable at scale, bridging the gap between what AI can do in research and what factories need in practice. Europe has the expertise, infrastructure, and market demand to lead in this space, and mimic is building the platform to enable that.”
Investor confidence in Europe’s robotics ecosystem
Investors see mimic’s approach as a breakthrough in addressing one of the toughest challenges in robotics, dexterous manipulation.
“Elaia is thrilled to lead the seed round in mimic,” says Clément Vanden Driessche, Partner at Elaia. “The world-class team is solving one of the most complex problems in physical AI. mimic’s integration of proprietary robotic hands, foundation models for robotics, and novel training methods enables autonomous, versatile manipulation that unlocks new areas of industrial automation.”
Andreas Schwarzenbrunner, General Partner at Speedinvest, adds: “Europe’s strength lies in combining world-class engineering with foundational research. With mimic, we see a platform that achieves human-level dexterity using frontier AI, addressing billion-dollar challenges on factory floors today. This is Europe’s opportunity to lead in the next era of AI and robotics.”
mimic’s funding round marks a significant step forward for AI-driven industrial robotics. By focusing on dexterity, adaptability, and human-like manipulation, the company is addressing the final frontier of automation, bridging the gap between rigid, pre-programmed robots and the fluid intelligence of human operators.
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