Figure drops OpenAI in favor of in-house models

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Figure AI, a robotics company working to bring a general purpose humanoid robot into commercial and residential use, announced Tuesday on X that it is exiting a deal with OpenAI. The Bay Area-based outfit has instead opted to focus on in-house AI owing to a “major breakthrough.” In conversation with TechCrunch afterward, founder and CEO Brett Adcock was tightlipped in terms of specifics, but he promised to deliver “something no one has ever seen on a humanoid” in the next 30 days.

OpenAI has been a longtime investor in Figure. The two companies announced a deal last year that aimed to “develop next generation AI models for humanoid robots.” At the same time, Figure announced a $675 million raise, valuing the company at $2.6 billion. Figure has so far raised a total of $1.5 billion from investors.

The news is a surprise, given the role that OpenAI plays in the cultural zeitgeist. Mere association with the company comes with a rapid profile boost. In August, the two companies announced that the Figure 02 humanoid would use OpenAI models for natural language communication.

The issue with the collaboration, according to Adcock, is integration. OpenAI is a huge company with a massive breadth — and the intelligence models to match. Embodied AI, which brings artificial intelligence to physical objects such as robots, isn’t the ChatGPT maker’s primary focus. Instead, Adcock suggests, the proper solution is building an end-to-end AI model focused on powering specific hardware.

“We found that to solve embodied AI at scale in the real world, you have to vertically integrate robot AI,” Adcock told TechCrunch. “We can’t outsource AI for the same reason we can’t outsource our hardware.”

OpenAI has notably hedged its bets in the humanoid space. The firm is also a major backer of the Norwegian robotics startup 1X. While the majority of humanoid firms are focused on warehouses and factories, the 1X has shifted much of its own focus on the home. At Figure’s Sunnyvale office last September, Adcock told TechCrunch that the company is also exploring the use of its systems in a home setting.

That is not the priority for Figure, however. After all, automakers have deeper pockets than individuals when it comes to exploring new technology. BMW announced last year that it had begun deploying Figure robots at a South Carolina factory.

OpenAI may also be exploring its own humanoid hardware. On Friday, the company filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) involving humanoids. The text references both “user-programmable humanoid robots” and “humanoid robots having communication and learning functions for assisting and entertaining people.”

IP filings are not a guarantee of future products, but it’s difficult to ignore these two pieces of news arriving in under a week. Figure’s massive funding rounds, meanwhile, have allowed it to quickly expand both its hardware and software teams. The company recently moved into a larger Bay Area office to accommodate its rapidly growing staff.

When it comes to proprietary software, there’s a lot to be said for the Apple ecosystem approach to product development. It’s an effective way to create software that works especially well with one’s hardware systems. It is both difficult and very resource intensive, however.

Most humanoid firms are working on their own bespoke AI models to differing degrees, though partnerships are still prevalent in the industry. In October, Boston Dynamics announced that it has been working with Toyota Research Institute to bring artificial smarts to the Atlas humanoid robot.

TechCrunch has reached out to OpenAI for comment.

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