PALO ALTO, CA — Sancho Robotics, a startup founded by two CMU roboticists, today announced the close of its $7M seed round, co-led by Fusion Fund and Catapult Ventures, to accelerate the development of general-purpose robots that serve as flexible infrastructure for advanced manufacturing. The company’s work was featured in the opening of NVIDIA’s 2026 GTC keynote.
A practical path to general-purpose robots
Sancho Robotics is building a physical API for advanced manufacturing: general-purpose robots that connect standalone workcells into coordinated end-to-end workflows. Instead of focusing on a single robot or isolated automation cell, Sancho aims at the harder orchestration layer, helping manufacturers link machines, handoffs, and production steps so the whole line works more seamlessly.
“Physical AI is having its moment, and most of the attention is pointed at general-purpose humanoids and headline-grabbing demos. Sancho is playing a different and, we think, smarter game: solve a painful, high-value problem in the real world today, and let the deployment data compound into a durable advantage.”
— Rouz Jazayeri, Managing Partner, Catapult Ventures
“AI has made software development a 24/7 operation, but the physical world hasn’t caught up, leading to factories that automate the stations but rely on human hands for the last mile in between. Sancho closes that exact gap, delivering full autonomy at millimeter-scale precision and a fraction of the cost of existing solutions.”
— Charlotte Xia, Investor, Fusion Fund
A robot sidekick for human adventurers
“Sancho takes its name from Sancho Panza, the sidekick who rode alongside Don Quixote as he set off to become a knight and explore the world. Sancho is loyal, grounded, and witty. Our mission is to bring robots like that into people’s lives—to give everyone a loyal sidekick for their own adventure.”
— Chao Cao, Co-founder and CEO, Sancho Robotics
Today, many of our brightest scientists and engineers spend countless hours handling samples, tending machines, and performing repetitive tests instead of tackling the creative challenges they were trained to solve. That’s where Sancho begins its journey: alongside people in labs and factories, taking on repetitive tasks safely and reliably so humans can focus on innovation. Over time, the company plans to expand Sancho’s capabilities to wherever repetitive work limits human potential, advancing its vision of a future where everyone has a robot sidekick by their side.