Assured Robot Intelligence
San Diego robot-AI start-up founded by Lerrel Pinto and Xiaolong Wang, building humanoid foundation models; acquired by Meta in May 2026.
Assured Robot Intelligence (ARI) was a US artificial-intelligence start-up developing foundation models for humanoid robots. Its stated aim was models that let robots understand, predict and adapt to human behaviour in complex environments, so that humanoids could take on physical work in what the company called high-value labour markets, with household chores cited among the target tasks. Press coverage describes its technical focus as robot control, self-learning, high-precision dexterity and whole-body humanoid manipulation.
ARI was co-founded by two well-known robot-learning researchers. Xiaolong Wang was an associate professor at the University of California San Diego and previously a researcher at Nvidia. Lerrel Pinto taught at New York University and earlier co-founded Fauna Robotics, a developer of kid-size humanoid robots that was itself acquired by Amazon in 2026. Startup databases list ARI as founded in 2021, headquartered in San Diego with staff in New York, and with a team of about 20 people at the time of its sale, according to Business Insider as cited in trade coverage.
The company raised a seed round led by AIX Ventures, an AI-focused early-stage fund that confirmed the acquisition; one database and some press reports put total funding at about USD 63 million, though no round breakdown has been published. ARI did not release a commercial product or a named public model before it was acquired, and its website, arirobots.com, served mainly as a company page.
On 1 May 2026 Meta confirmed it had acquired ARI for an undisclosed sum. The team, including both co-founders, joined the research division of Meta Superintelligence Labs and works closely with Meta Robotics Studio, the unit developing Meta's humanoid robot hardware and software platform. A Meta spokesperson described ARI as a company at the frontier of robotic intelligence and said the team brings deep expertise in robot control, self-learning and whole-body humanoid control. Media coverage framed the deal as part of Meta's push to build a common AI and software platform for third-party humanoid robots.
For RobotToday's humanoid and embodied-AI landscape, ARI belongs in the foundation-model and embodied-software segment as an acquired team rather than an independent vendor. Its research now continues inside Meta, so buyers and partners should look to Meta's robotics announcements for any products that come out of the ARI work.
Primary type & automation activities this supplier delivers:
More related news
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Report: Meta Buys Humanoid Robotics Startup AIInsider · May 04, 2026
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ROBOTTODAY Weekly April 27th – May 1st, 2026 RobotToday · May 02, 2026
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Contact Assured Robot Intelligence
WEBSITE
https://www.arirobots.comHEADQUARTERS
United States
Company Facts
Founded
2021
Primary Role
Software/Algorithm
Company Size
-
Primary Region
North America
Annual Sales
-
Funding Stage
Subsidiary / Acquired
Funding Total
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