Anoop Gadhrri, CEO of Axibo, never imagined that his initial inquiry about an unpaid opportunity would lead to the creation of a company that would break into the entertainment industry. In the summer of 2019, Gadhrri, along with Sohaib Al-Emara, reached out to Reiner Schmidt, and the McMaster University engineers began working on robotics kits. Years later, after crowdfunding, bootstrapping, and contracting for clients like Netflix and Apple, Axibo has secured $12 million to launch a humanoid robotics division, revisiting their original passion.
Securing Funding and Expansion Plans
The all-equity funding round was led by an undisclosed U.S.-based strategic angel investor who contributed $7.5 million USD ($10.4 million CAD), with additional participation from ex-Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan. The founders themselves invested $1 million CAD. This round values Axibo at $30 million USD ($41.5 million CAD). According to Gadhrri, about 70% of the funding will be used to expand Axibo’s workforce from eight to nearly 30 employees, focusing on hiring more engineers and robotics experts.
To facilitate this growth, Axibo plans to relocate from its current 5,000 sq.ft office in Cambridge to a 10,000 to 15,000 sq.ft space near the University of Waterloo, citing the talent pool there as a key reason. “There’s a lot of talented engineers in robotics at Waterloo University,” Gadhrri explained. The remaining capital will be allocated to manufacturing and equipment needed to fabricate Axibo’s prototype humanoid robots, with the first model expected to debut next year.
From Crowdfunding to Production
Initially, Axibo developed an AI-powered camera mount assistant for tutorial videos, which unexpectedly gained commercial traction. The device raised just under $100,000 CAD on Kickstarter, surpassing its original target of $40,000. However, the company faced challenges with product costs, leading to financial losses on each unit sold. The team survived on cash flow from “random contracts” and later invested this capital back into Axibo in 2021 to develop a virtual production feature.
Virtual Production Technology
Axibo’s virtual production technology, enabled through an Unreal Engine plugin and its own system, allows users to sync virtual and physical cameras, creating a consumer-level version of Disney’s The Volume virtual soundstage. This technology found adoption among major clients like Netflix and Apple, with Axibo’s adaptability as a contractor proving beneficial in meeting studio-requested changes. A LinkedIn post from Netflix’s Eyeline Studios showcases Axibo’s volumetric capture technology used in the 2023 film Aquaman 2: The Lost Kingdom.
Returning to Robotics Roots
While expanding beyond cinema tech, Axibo is revisiting its founders’ original passion for general-purpose robotics. Gadhrri envisions Axibo’s robots taking on various manual labor tasks globally, particularly in farming and elder care. Although Axibo isn’t the only Canadian company in the humanoid robotics space – facing competition from firms like Vancouver’s Sanctuary AI – Gadhrri views China as the primary competition due to its high number of robotics companies.
Gadhrri emphasizes Axibo’s commitment to building in Canada, driven by a desire to give back to the country that welcomed him as an Indian immigrant. The company is looking for young talent that shares this mission. With its new funding, Axibo is poised to make significant strides in the humanoid robotics sector.
