The rapid growth of artificial intelligence and robotics has turned the development of humanoid robots into one of the most exciting industries of our time. These robots are designed to complement or even partially replace human work in everyday settings such as production lines, warehouses, and logistics centers. Recently, the company Figure AI unveiled its BotQ – a factory optimized for high-volume production – where production will soon begin in the tens of thousands.
Figure AI, Inc. is a US-based robotics company founded in 2022 by Brett Adcock. The founder, who has been involved in several innovative ventures before, aims to create humanoid robots capable of performing a range of complex tasks in real-world environments. The company’s team consists of experienced engineers and experts in robotics, artificial intelligence, sensing, and navigation, who have gained valuable experience at renowned companies like Boston Dynamics and Tesla.
The first prototype, Figure 01, was unveiled in 2022 as a bipedal humanoid robot primarily designed to assist with physical labor. Since then, the company has made significant progress with Figure 02 – the next-generation humanoid robot featuring advanced sensors, greater computing power, and more refined mechanics. Figure AI’s rapid growth has been fueled not only by technological innovation but also by substantial investments. For example, in 2023, it raised $70 million, and in February 2024, it secured $675 million in funding from investors such as Jeff Bezos, Microsoft, Nvidia, Intel, and OpenAI, which brought the company’s valuation to $2.6 billion.
The company is not solely focused on the technological aspects of manufacturing. Through strategic partnerships – such as its collaboration with BMW – Figure aims to address labor shortages by integrating humanoid robots into manufacturing processes to perform monotonous, repetitive, and dangerous tasks.
Optimized for High-Volume Production: The BotQ Factory
BotQ is designed to bring the production of humanoid robots entirely in-house, ensuring the highest standards in the production process, quality control, and product reliability. Figure AI has chosen to manage every production step – from component manufacturing to final assembly – through vertically integrated manufacturing, guaranteeing that the robots delivered to the market achieve peak functionality.
The BotQ factory has been designed with a special emphasis on building an advanced software infrastructure that includes real-time monitoring and optimization of manufacturing operations. Over the past six months, the company’s engineers have developed systems such as Manufacturing Execution Software (MES), Product Lifecycle Management (PLM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Warehouse Management System (WMS). These systems allow the BotQ factory to operate smoothly, quickly, and precisely while continuously collecting data on production cycles to further optimize the processes.
An especially innovative solution at BotQ is that Figure’s humanoid robots – such as Figure 02 – are not only manufactured for customers but also participate in the assembly process on the production line. Thanks to the company’s proprietary in-house artificial intelligence system, known as Helix, the robots can automatically handle material tasks, drastically reducing the need for human intervention. This hybrid approach, which combines AI-driven automation with human supervision, maximizes both production speed and precision.
The first-generation production line at BotQ will be capable of producing up to 12,000 humanoid robots per year – and that’s just the beginning. The company plans to significantly increase production volumes over the next few years. By rethinking the manufacturing process to reduce the number of parts and combine them, significant time savings have been achieved: parts that used to take several days to produce on CNC machines can now be produced in just 20 seconds using complex steel molds. Although such technologies require a high initial investment, BotQ offers a highly cost-effective solution in terms of long-term return.
Producing humanoid robots presents a particular challenge in developing the supply chain, as well-established modular supply chains do not yet exist in this area. For BotQ, Figure decided to handle most of the basic technologies – such as actuators, hands, batteries, and final assembly – in-house, while individual component production is managed by external partners. The company has also assembled a world-class global supplier management team to scale the supply chain to up to 100,000 robots or 3,000,000 actuators in the next few years.
A key element in BotQ’s success is its team of experienced manufacturing engineers. These specialists are responsible for breaking down the assembly process into sub-stations, selecting the right tools, and assembling parts quickly and efficiently. They also provide continuous feedback to the mechanical, electrical, and software teams to reduce production cycle times, enabling ongoing innovation and quality improvement.
Conclusion
Figure AI, Inc. has grown at an incredible pace over the past few years and has become an increasingly dominant player in the humanoid robot market. Since its founding in 2022, the company has continuously expanded its product portfolio and made improvements that allow robots to work not only as prototypes but also in real, everyday applications. Figure’s goal is to integrate the latest advances in AI and robotics into manufacturing processes to address labor shortages and boost production efficiency.
The launch of the BotQ factory marks the beginning of a new era in the mass production of humanoid robots. Integrated manufacturing processes, advanced software infrastructure, and robotic automation will all contribute to Figure’s ability to produce even larger volumes of reliable and cost-effective robots in the future. BotQ not only increases production speed and precision but also optimizes the durability of the robots through advanced quality control systems, ensuring high product quality in the long term.
With this approach, Figure AI aims to make humanoid robots indispensable in the future – not only in manufacturing but also in logistics, warehousing, and even retail. With the innovative BotQ factory, the company will be able to keep pace with growing market demands and drive a technological breakthrough that could fundamentally change the structure of the labor market.
Overall, Figure AI and the BotQ factory herald a new era in humanoid robotics, where technological advancements and industrial applications come together to not only complement but gradually transform the future of human work.
