Insider Brief
- Walden Robotics launched from stealth with $300 million in funding at a $1.1 billion valuation to build and deploy general-purpose robots for manufacturing and logistics.
- The round was co-led by Toyota and Deviation Capital, with participation from investors including Nvidia, Boeing, Samsung Ventures, Prologis Ventures, CoreWeave Ventures and Menlo Ventures.
- Walden said its robots are already working in production at a Toyota plant in North America and use Large Behavior Models to learn new tasks and improve through real-world use.
Walden Robotics has launched from stealth with $300 million in funding to build and deploy general-purpose robots for manufacturing and logistics.
According to Walden, the round values it at $1.1 billion and was co-led by Toyota and Deviation Capital. Toyota’s participation includes Toyota Motor Corp., Toyota Invention Partners and Toyota Ventures.
Other investors include Nvidia, Boeing, AE Ventures, Samsung Ventures, Prologis Ventures, CoreWeave Ventures, Calibrate Ventures, Colle Capital, Shine Capital, NextView Ventures, Squarepoint Capital, One Madison Group, KAS Venture Partners and Menlo Ventures.
Walden is developing what it calls full-stack physical AI, with robots that perform work in real production environments early, allowing workers to delegate hard-to-automate tasks while continuing to focus on problem-solving, judgment and skilled work. Walden said it is targeting sectors facing labor shortages, demographic changes, competitive pressure and rising demand, including automotive, aerospace, semiconductors, electronics, logistics and life sciences.
Walden indicated its work builds on robotics and AI research including Diffusion Policy and Large Behavior Models, a class of models the company said powers its robots and allows them to learn new tasks and improve through use.
“Core advances in Physical AI, and all of the excitement and attention surrounding it, has made disruptive change possible,” noted Russ Tedrake, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of Walden, professor at MIT and former senior vice president of large behavior models at Toyota Research Institute. “But providing real value to customers and building a robust and scalable business requires a deep understanding and respect for how manufacturing is done today. The best way to make fast and positive progress is by working closely together with the real experts.”
Walden Robotics launched out of Toyota Research Institute in January 2026 with robotics and AI researchers and operators from Toyota Research Institute, MIT, Stanford and Amazon. The company noted it began working with customers across multiple industries immediately and since February, Walden’s robots have been used in production at a Toyota plant in North America. In that case, the robots moved from pilot work to production tasks in less than two months.
“Walden’s uniqueness is its ability to deliver robots that provide value from day one in real-world work environments: Robots that continuously improve through learning, while always keeping people at the center,” added Hiroki Nakajima, executive vice president, member of the board of directors and CTO, Toyota Motor Corporation. “This reflects the values shared by Toyota and Walden, including kaizen, jidoka, and a strong commitment to supporting and developing people. Over the long term, we hope to shape the future of manufacturing together and become partners that contribute to improving quality of life for people around the world.”
Image credit: Walden Robotics
