Barcelona-based startup Theker, which specializes in AI-powered robotics, has raised $85 million in a Series A funding round as manufacturers seek faster ways to automate operations amid labor shortages. The company aims to build robots that are not limited to a single task but can be reconfigured for different operations inside warehouses and factories.
U.S. venture capital firm CRV led the round, with participation from traditional and strategic investors, including Samsung and Aglaé Ventures, the investment vehicle associated with Bernard Arnault, chairman and CEO of LVMH. Theker describes the round as “the largest Series A round for robotics in Europe ever,” while TechCrunch found no larger round in its records.
Reconfigurable Robots
Theker’s approach differs from that of humanoid-like robots designed around a fixed form. The company says the robots’ hands, arms, and overall structure can be swapped or resized according to the task required. This could include sorting packages, packing clothes, and handling bottles and containers in warehouses.
Carla Gomez Cano, Theker’s co-founder, said real-world operations do not always repeat in the same way; a system that succeeds at placing the same product into the same box may not be suitable for more complex and varied operations. The company is betting on this general-purpose use instead of training the robot for one specific task.
From Retail to Manufacturing
Inditex, the parent company of the Zara brand, was one of Theker’s early backers, reflecting the company’s starting point in the retail sector, not the limits of its ambitions. Theker plans to expand later into heavier industrial environments, including manufacturing, where manual tasks are more complex and take place at a larger scale.
Gomez Cano explained that Samsung is not yet a customer of the company, but the two sides are engaged in advanced discussions. Theker welcomes the possibility of Samsung becoming a customer, supplier, and investor at the same time, a combination the company believes could provide it with revenue and credibility in large-scale manufacturing.
Commercial Expansion and a Larger Team
Less than a year after a record seed round, Theker raised more than its previous target of between $30 million and $40 million. The company says it does not want to build only pilot projects; therefore, it is moving beyond innovation departments and going directly to logistics and operations teams, where deals are tied to commercial needs and shorter implementation timelines.
To demonstrate its ability to execute this vision, Theker operates a showroom in central Barcelona and plans to open others as it expands across Europe, the United States, and Asia. It also intends to increase its headcount in technology, implementation, and sales. Gomez Cano said the company received 15,000 job applications, and its team could grow from dozens of employees to 120 employees by the end of the year, while emphasizing that this estimate could change.
The round reinforces Theker’s commitment to its headquarters in Barcelona, which the article describes as a growing hub for robotics, and to the European technology ecosystem more broadly.