Former Cruise co-founder and CEO Kyle Vogt is back in the spotlight with his latest venture, The Bot Company. Which has just secured a whopping $150 million in new funding. According to Reuters, the fresh investment round was led by Greenoaks, though the company has yet to make an official comment. Teaming up with Paril Jain, who once led the AI tech team at Tesla, and ex-Cruise software engineer Luke Holoubek. Vogt is steering The Bot Company toward creating intelligent robots designed to tackle everyday household chores. It’s a bold vision that blends deep robotics knowledge with cutting-edge artificial intelligence.
This latest cash injection comes less than a year after Vogt quietly launched the company. Back in May, The Bot Company kicked off with another $150 million in initial backing from high-profile investors like former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman, Pioneer founder Daniel Gross, Spark Capital’s Nabeel Hyatt, Stripe CEO Patrick Collison, Stripe co-founder John Collison, and Quiet Capital. Their support signaled strong belief in Vogt’s new mission from day one.
Vogt’s return to robotics follows his dramatic exit from Cruise, the autonomous vehicle startup he founded in 2013. General Motors acquired Cruise, but Vogt remained at the helm until late last year. His departure came just five months before The Bot Company emerged. Spurred by a serious incident involving a Cruise self-driving car. On October 2, a Cruise vehicle ran over a pedestrian—dragging them 20 feet—after the individual had first been hit by a human-driven car. The incident triggered regulatory scrutiny and eventually led to Vogt stepping down.
Now, with a fresh slate and ambitious backing, Vogt seems determined to chart a new course. One aimed at solving some of the most mundane tasks inside our homes. The Bot Company’s robots are designed to tackle everyday chores, a massive market that’s long been eyed but never fully conquered by consumer robotics.
As the competition heats up in the robotics space, all eyes will be on Vogt and his team. As they aim to reshape how we think about robots in our daily lives. With industry veterans leading the charge and significant funding secured, The Bot Company is poised to become a major player in the smart home revolution.
