RobCo Modular Robots with Robotics-as-a-Service

RobCo was founded in Munich in 2020 by former Technical University of Munich robotics researchers Roman Hölzl, Paul Maroldt and Constantin Dresel. It targets small and mid-sized manufacturers that find traditional automation too expensive and rigid, and has over 200 employees with manufacturing and assembly in Austin, Texas.

Its offering combines modular industrial robots built from standard joint and link modules with RobFlow, RobCo Studio and RobVision software for programming, configuration and machine vision, plus AI path planning. Integrated Solutions deliver complete automation cells for tasks such as machine tending and palletizing under a Robotics-as-a-Service model, where RobCo owns, deploys and maintains the hardware for a monthly fee. Alfie, an autonomous two-arm industrial robot, targets high-mix work. Customers include BMW, Rosenberger, T-Systems, Gleason and Linamar.

• Modular robots: arms assembled from standard modules to fit each task.
• RobFlow and RobCo Studio: software for programming and configuring robot cells.
• RobVision: machine vision for recognising and locating parts.
• AI path planning: automatic motion planning for robot tasks.
• Robotics-as-a-Service: complete cells for a monthly fee with zero upfront cost.
• Alfie: autonomous two-arm robot for high-mix, unstructured work.

A Vietnamese mechanical parts supplier can rent a machine tending cell for CNC lathes without buying robots. A packaging plant can add palletizing under a monthly contract during peak seasons. A foreign-invested factory can pilot a modular cell before rolling it out across lines.

The service model requires no upfront investment, which the company contrasts with more than €500k upfront for traditional automation, turning capex into a predictable monthly cost. Modular hardware can be reconfigured as products change. RobCo handles deployment and maintenance, so factories without robotics engineers can still automate.

Labour shortages are pushing SMEs to automate, but high upfront costs and integration complexity hold them back. Subscription-based robotics and physical AI are lowering that barrier, a model that fits cash-constrained manufacturers in emerging Asian markets.

Registered in Munich in October 2020 and renamed RobCo GmbH in 2021. Raised a €39 million Series B in 2024 and a $100 million Series C in January 2026 led by Lightspeed and Lingotto, then passed a $1 billion valuation in October 2026. Has a US subsidiary in Austin and a Bay Area lab.