Robot Factory Startup: $30M Raised for Human-Learning Robotics

MicroFactory: Reimagining Automation Through Miniature Manufacturing

While a significant portion of the robotics industry focuses on creating human-sized robots or fully automated factories, MicroFactory is adopting a different strategy – achieving substantial impact through miniaturization.

A Compact, General-Purpose Manufacturing Solution

Based in San Francisco, MicroFactory has developed a versatile, tabletop manufacturing kit. Its footprint is comparable to that of a large dog crate. This self-contained factory incorporates dual robotic arms and benefits from both human-led training and artificial intelligence capabilities.

Igor Kulakov, co-founder and CEO of MicroFactory, explained in a TechCrunch interview that humanoid forms aren’t essential for general-purpose robotics. He stated, “We opted to engineer robots from the ground up, prioritizing general functionality without mimicking human anatomy.” This approach, he believes, simplifies both the hardware and the AI development processes.

Hands-On Training and Real-Time Visibility

MicroFactory doesn’t offer robotic arms individually. Instead, their system is delivered as a fully enclosed, yet transparent, workstation. This design allows operators to observe the manufacturing process as it unfolds in real time.

The compact factory is engineered for precision tasks, including circuit board assembly, component soldering, and cable management. A key feature is the ability to train the robots through direct physical guidance, physically moving the arms through the desired motions. Kulakov asserts this method proves faster than conventional AI programming for complex manufacturing sequences.

“Typically, this process might require a couple of hours,” Kulakov noted, “but the robot gains a significantly improved understanding of the required actions.” He draws a parallel to human employee training, stating that companies already allocate time and resources for instruction and supervision, making this model a more efficient use of existing capabilities.

From Manufacturing Challenges to Innovative Solutions

Kulakov’s prior experience in traditional manufacturing was the catalyst for MicroFactory’s inception.

Alongside his co-founder, Viktor Petrenko, he previously managed bitLighter, a company specializing in portable lighting solutions for photographers. Kulakov highlighted the difficulties encountered when onboarding new employees and ensuring consistent manufacturing quality. With the emergence of advancements in AI, they recognized an opportunity to automate these processes and subsequently launched MicroFactory.

Early Traction and Funding

MicroFactory was founded in 2024, and the initial prototype was completed within five months. Currently, the company has secured hundreds of preorders from customers with diverse applications, ranging from electronics assembly to the processing of snails for the escargot market.

Recently, MicroFactory secured $1.5 million in pre-seed funding. Investors included representatives from Hugging Face, a leading AI firm, and entrepreneur Naval Ravikant. This funding round established a post-money valuation of $30 million for the startup.

Future Plans and Scalability

The newly acquired funding will be allocated to the production and shipment of units. The company is actively transitioning its prototype into a commercially viable product, with shipments anticipated to commence within approximately two months.

Further investment will be directed towards expanding the team and refining the underlying technology, particularly the AI models. Kulakov emphasized the company’s growth strategy, stating, “Our expansion is directly tied to hardware production, and we aim to increase output tenfold annually.”

“In the initial year, our target is to manufacture 1,000 robots – roughly three units per day – a capacity we are confident in achieving. We then intend to progressively scale up production volumes,” he concluded.