Theker Raises $85 Million in Europe's Largest Robotics Series A for Factory Automation

Barcelona-based startup Theker closed an $85 million Series A round in June 2026, billed as Europe's largest-ever robotics Series A. The round was led by CRV with participation from Samsung, LVMH, and other investors.

The funding will accelerate development of AI-powered, reconfigurable robots designed for messy, non-specialized industrial tasks such as sorting, packing, and handling a variety of items in warehouses and manufacturing facilities.

Unlike traditional single-task robots, Theker's systems use swappable components and generalist AI to adapt to dynamic environments. The company plans to expand its team, open new showrooms across Europe, the United States, and Asia, and move beyond retail pilots into heavier industrial deployments.

Backing from manufacturing giants like Samsung adds credibility and opens potential supply-chain collaboration opportunities. The investment signals strong confidence in practical, general-purpose robotics as a solution to labor shortages.

The raise comes as the broader technology sector shifts toward what industry analysts are calling "physical AI," where the focus moves from software models to real-world automation. NVIDIA has expanded its humanoid robot platform, collaborating with manufacturers in the U.S., Europe, and South Korea to standardize research hardware. NVIDIA and Hyundai have also deepened their partnership to deploy physical AI in manufacturing and mobility.

Intel launched its "Crescent Island" inference chips and the Xeon 6+ processor in June 2026, targeting the growing demand for CPU-centric infrastructure as AI workloads shift from training to production-scale inference.

Approximately 30 to 50 percent of planned U.S. data centers are facing delays or cancellations due to shortages in power, grid connections, and water resources, according to industry reports. The constraints are pushing companies to look for more efficient ways to deploy AI at scale, which is driving interest in edge computing and robotics.