1,500 robotics startups have raised about $90 billion since 2019. and 20 of them are unicorns with valuations in excess of $1 billion. That’s the good news. The bad news is that investment in robotics fell sharply to a five-year low in 2023, and one particular category, autonomous vehicles, has plummeted from $9.7 billion in 2021 to $2.2 billion in 2023.
The biggest sector for investment last year was vertical-specific robots, led by investments in defense and logistics. Out of a total investment of $4.1 billion, most went to logistics and security robots, with medical robots following:Autonomous vehicle startups are having a tough time right now.
Exits in the robotics space peaked in 2021 as well, with 36 deals valued at about $44 billion. In 2022, that dropped to about $26 billion, and in 2023, robotics exits cratered to under $2 billion.