The best-known robotics names get most of the coverage. This list looks one level down, at companies in surgery, labs, factories, and plant inspection where October brought concrete numbers. MMI raised a $125 million Series D for its microsurgery robot, Multiply Labs raised $75 million to automate cell therapy production, and the US Navy and GSA raised the ceiling on Gecko Robotics' contract to $300 million.16,19,12
Every company is here because something happened between September 28 and November 2, 2026: a funding round or loan, a product starting deliveries, a government contract, or a reported quarter. It is not a ranking of the best robotics companies overall. For that, see our company reviews and how we score, and see Robotics Founders to Watch and Hottest Robotics Investors for the people and money behind these deals.
How we chose
We tracked funding rounds, loans, product deliveries, contracts, and quarterly results that robotics companies announced from September 28 to November 2, 2026, and checked each against the company's own announcement, a filing, or trade press coverage. We favored rising companies over household names. The ten companies are listed in alphabetical order, and each has a full review on Robotics Reviewed.
The list
| # | Name | What it makes and where | Why now |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ANYbotics | Legged inspection robots, Zurich, Switzerland | Began delivering the explosion-proof ANYmal X on October 27 |
| 2 | Distalmotion | DEXTER surgical robot, Lausanne, Switzerland | Up to $70 million term loan from Perceptive Advisors on October 21 |
| 3 | Formic | Robots as a service for factories, Chicago, Illinois | $50 million Series B and debt on October 22 |
| 4 | FORT Robotics | Safety controls for robots, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | About $20 million led by Tiger Global on October 22, ahead of a Nasdaq listing |
| 5 | Gecko Robotics | Wall-climbing inspection robots, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Navy and GSA contract ceiling raised to $300 million on October 20 |
| 6 | Knightscope | Security robots, Sunnyvale, California | Third quarter revenue of about $8.7 million, up 177%, reported October 20 |
| 7 | MMI | Symani microsurgery robot, Jacksonville, Florida | $125 million Series D led by BioStar Capital on October 8 |
| 8 | Multiply Labs | Cell therapy manufacturing robots, San Francisco, California | $75 million Series B led by NantWorks on October 6 |
| 9 | Opentrons | Lab automation robots, Long Island City, New York | $40 million Series E led by Avego on October 29 |
| 10 | ZAP Surgical | ZAP-X brain radiosurgery system, San Carlos, California | $36 million led by Catalio Capital Management on October 19 |
Source: company announcements, SEC filings, and trade press, September 28 to November 2, 2026.2,4,8,10,12,14,16,19,21,23
- Equity round
- Loan facility or financing commitment
Distalmotion's $70 million is the ceiling of a term loan facility. FORT's about $20 million combines a financing and a commitment to a PIPE that closes with its SPAC merger. Formic's $50 million includes debt. Opentrons and ZAP Surgical were both founded in 2014; their dots are offset slightly so both show.
Source: company announcements. Chart: Robotics Reviewed.4,8,10,16,19,21,23
Key Findings
- MMI's $125 million Series D is the largest round on the list, and the three surgical and medical companies together raised up to $231 million in the window, counting Distalmotion's loan at its $70 million ceiling.16,4,23
- Founding year did not predict round size. Formic, the youngest company here, raised $50 million, more than ZAP Surgical and Opentrons, which are six years older.8,23,21
- Three companies made the list without raising money: ANYbotics on deliveries, Gecko Robotics on a contract, and Knightscope on revenue growth.2,12,14
1.ANYbotics
Legged inspection robots, Zurich, Switzerland
ANYbotics spun out of ETH Zurich in 2016 and builds four-legged robots that walk inspection rounds in plants, reading gauges and listening for leaks. It has raised more than $150 million and has about 200 employees in Zurich, San Francisco, and Barcelona. More than 50 power, metals, and materials customers run over 120,000 autonomous inspections a month on its system, according to the company.2
Why now
ANYmal X is built to work in explosive atmospheres, the zones of oil, gas, and chemical plants where ordinary robots are banned. BP, Equinor, Shell, PETRONAS, Petrobras, BASF, and SLB tested it through an early access program before deliveries began, and Petrobras ordered six units for about $4 million in 2023.2,3
The claim that it is the first legged robot for explosive atmospheres is the company's own, and deliveries have only just started, so results from hazardous zones at scale are still to come.
2.Distalmotion
DEXTER surgical robot, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Company
- Distalmotion, founded 2012
- Why now
- Announced a term loan facility of up to $70 million on October 21, 2026.4
Distalmotion, founded in 2012, makes DEXTER, a small soft-tissue surgical robot that rolls between operating rooms and works with the laparoscopic tools a hospital or surgery center already owns.7 It has aimed DEXTER at ambulatory surgery centers, which its CEO says need robots built for them, not retrofitted from hospitals.6,5
Why now
The senior secured loan from Perceptive Advisors funds more US surgery center placements and new DEXTER instruments. CEO Greg Roche told MD+DI the money is fuel for that expansion and for research and development.4,5
This is debt, and “up to” means the full $70 million does not have to be drawn at once. The test is whether surgery centers buy DEXTER in numbers that justify the borrowing.
3.Formic
Robots as a service for factories, Chicago, Illinois
- Company
- Formic, founded 2020
- Why now
- Raised $50 million on October 22, 2026, with a Series B led by Mercato Partners.8
Formic rents robots to manufacturers for a monthly fee and handles installation, monitoring, and service, so plants pay for robot hours instead of buying the cells. It operates hundreds of robots in more than 100 facilities across over 30 states.8
Why now
The round, a Series B led by Mercato Partners plus debt from S2G Investments, funds a move from task-specific cells into general-purpose robots under the same rental model. Lux Capital, which led Formic's Series A, put in more money.8,9
Formic reports 99.6% uptime and 97% renewals, figures TNW notes it has not verified. It has not said how the $50 million splits between equity and debt.9
4.FORT Robotics
Safety controls for robots, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Company
- FORT Robotics, founded 2018
- Why now
- Announced about $20 million in new commitments on October 22, 2026.10
FORT makes wireless emergency stops, safety controllers, and secure communications that let people work around robots and autonomous vehicles. Its own investor presentation reports revenue of $11.6 million in 2025, up 62% from 2024, with gross margin above 65%.11
Why now
The money, led by Tiger Global with Mark Cuban Companies, comes ahead of FORT's planned listing on Nasdaq through a merger with Newbury Street II Acquisition Corp.10
About half of it is a commitment to the PIPE that closes with the merger, so it depends on the SPAC deal going through, which FORT expects in the fourth quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027.10
5.Gecko Robotics
Wall-climbing inspection robots, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Company
- Gecko Robotics, founded 2013
- Why now
- The Navy and GSA raised its contract ceiling to $300 million on October 20, 2026.12
Gecko builds robots that climb, crawl, fly, and swim to measure corrosion and wall thickness on boilers, tanks, ships, and submarines, then turns the data into models of asset health. A $125 million Series D in June 2025 valued it at $1.25 billion.12,13
Why now
The new ceiling is four times the initial $71 million award, six months later. Gecko says its system can save the Navy up to $8 million in repair costs per ship by finding problems before a ship enters drydock.12
A ceiling is the most the government can order under the contract, not money already spent, and the per-ship savings figure is Gecko's own.
6.Knightscope
Security robots, Sunnyvale, California
- Company
- Knightscope, founded 2013
- Why now
- Reported preliminary third quarter revenue of about $8.7 million on October 20, 2026.14
Knightscope makes autonomous security robots and now sells them with software and licensed security agents as one service it calls the Autonomous Security Force. Revenue for the first nine months of 2026 was about $23.7 million.14
Why now
It was the third quarter in a row of triple-digit growth, and the company reported a record of about $27 million in renewals, bookings, and client awards.14
The numbers are preliminary and unaudited. Knightscope lost $33.8 million in 2025 on $11.3 million of revenue, and its annual report says those losses raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern.15
7.MMI
Symani microsurgery robot, Jacksonville, Florida
- Company
- MMI (Medical Microinstruments), founded 2015
- Why now
- Raised a $125 million Series D on October 8, 2026.16
MMI was founded near Pisa, Italy, and makes Symani, a robot that scales down a surgeon's hand movements to stitch vessels and nerves under a microscope. It has about 50 systems installed and 3,500 procedures done, and has raised about $345 million in total.16,18
Why now
BioStar Capital led the round, with Angelini Ventures among the new investors, and the company says it will use the money to scale adoption.16,17
Fifty systems is an early installed base. The round is a bet that procedures such as lymphatic surgery, which few surgeons can do by hand, will grow.16
8.Multiply Labs
Cell therapy manufacturing robots, San Francisco, California
- Company
- Multiply Labs, founded 2016
- Why now
- Raised a $75 million Series B on October 6, 2026.19
Multiply Labs builds robotic systems that automate the hand steps of making cell therapies in cleanrooms, using Universal Robots arms. Its total funding is now over $100 million.19,20
Why now
Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong and NantWorks led the round, with AstraZeneca and Teradyne among the new investors and Lux Capital returning. The company says its robots cut cost per dose by 74%.19
That cost figure is the company's own, and the real test is commercial-scale production for drug makers, which is still ahead.
9.Opentrons
Lab automation robots, Long Island City, New York
Opentrons sells low-cost, open liquid-handling robots to research labs. Its Flex robot starts at $24,950, and more than 11,000 Opentrons robots are in use in over 80 countries.22,21
Why now
Avego led the round, with BroadOak Capital Partners also investing. Opentrons says it will use the money to make its robots the standard way for AI systems to run experiments in a physical lab.21
The pitch depends on AI-designed experiments becoming routine. Opentrons did not publish the valuation or its revenue.
10.ZAP Surgical
ZAP-X brain radiosurgery system, San Carlos, California
- Company
- ZAP Surgical, founded 2014
- Why now
- Announced $36 million on October 19, 2026.23
ZAP was founded by John Adler, the Stanford neurosurgeon who invented the CyberKnife. Its ZAP-X system treats brain tumors with focused radiation and is self-shielded, so a hospital does not need a concrete vault to install it.24
Why now
Catalio Capital Management led the round, with Baheal Medical continuing. ZAP has shipped 50 systems and treated nearly 10,000 patients, so the money goes to scaling production more than proving the idea.23
Fifty systems is still small next to established radiosurgery makers, and ZAP did not publish revenue.
What to watch next month
FORT Robotics expects to close its SPAC merger in the fourth quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027.10 Knightscope's audited third quarter results will show whether the preliminary $8.7 million holds.14 ANYbotics will show ANYmal X publicly for the first time at ADIPEC 2026 with SLB and Kuwait Oil Co., the first look at the robot in front of oil and gas buyers.2
The Hottest Robotics Companies list is updated monthly. See every edition of our rankings, including past months as they are added.
Sources
- Robotics Reviewed analysis of robotics company announcements, filings, and press coverage from September 28 to November 2, 2026
- The Robot Report, “ANYbotics begins delivering ANYmal X legged robot for explosive atmospheres,” October 27, 2026
- ANYbotics, “Petrobras and ANYbotics Join Efforts to Automate Offshore FPSO Inspections,” November 2023
- GlobeNewswire, “Distalmotion Secures Up to $70 Million Term Loan Facility From Perceptive Advisors to Accelerate US ASC Expansion,” October 21, 2026
- MD+DI, “Why ASCs Need Robots Built for Them, Not Retrofitted From Hospitals,” October 2026
- MedTech Dive, “Surgeries are moving to ASCs. Distalmotion wants its robot to drive the shift”
- Distalmotion, homepage, accessed November 2, 2026
- VentureBeat (Business Wire), “Formic raises $50 million to scale physical AI across American manufacturing,” October 22, 2026
- TNW, “Formic raises $50M to bring general-purpose robots to US factories,” October 2026
- FORT Robotics, “FORT Robotics secures approximately $20 million in additional funding led by Tiger Global and Mark Cuban Companies,” October 22, 2026
- FORT Robotics, investor presentation, August 2026
- Gecko Robotics, “Gecko Robotics’ Contract More than Quadruples to $300 Million to Support U.S. Navy Readiness,” October 20, 2026
- CNBC, “Gecko Robotics raises $125 million, surpassing billion-dollar valuation,” June 12, 2025
- Knightscope, preliminary third quarter 2026 results, SEC exhibit 99.1, October 20, 2026
- Knightscope, Form 10-K for fiscal 2025, SEC
- MMI, “MMI raises $125M in Series D,” October 8, 2026
- MedTech Dive, “MMI raises $125M to scale up in robotic microsurgery,” October 9, 2026
- MMI, Our investors, accessed November 2, 2026
- Multiply Labs, “Multiply Labs raises $75 million Series B,” October 6, 2026
- Universal Robots, Multiply Labs case story
- Opentrons, “Opentrons announces $40M Series E round,” October 29, 2026
- Opentrons, Opentrons Flex robot, accessed November 2, 2026
- ZAP Surgical, “ZAP Surgical secures $36 million led by Catalio Capital Management,” October 19, 2026
- ZAP Surgical, ZAP-X, accessed November 2, 2026