July 3, 2024

iRobot

Hi there,

This is definitely not investment advice.

But hear me out.

I think the humanoid robot market is going to be huge.

And so I’ve been trying to find a way to play the public markets to ride this trend.

The challenge is that most of the actual humanoid robotics companies are still private.

So here’s my WIP research, along with some questions.

LMK what you think.

Reminder: This is not investment advice.

The first thing I tried to understand was the humanoid robotics supply chain.

Once I understood that, I wanted to see if there are downstream players that are publicly traded and might be key suppliers to robot makers and hence beneficiaries of this mega-trend.

What I learned is that the supply chain is complex and full of specialized suppliers spread across the globe.

Here are the key components of the humanoid robotics supply chain:

• Electronics and Sensors: Essential for robot control systems, sensory input, and data processing. Suppliers typically specialize in advanced electronics, microprocessors, and a variety of sensors (touch, vision, hearing, etc.).
• Actuators and Motors: Critical for movement and operation. These are sourced from suppliers specializing in precision motors and actuators that can mimic human movements.
• Batteries and Power Systems: High-capacity, efficient power sources are required to sustain operation. Suppliers focus on advanced battery technology and power management systems. 
• Materials: Advanced materials for the robot’s body, joints, and covering, including metals, plastics, and composites, are sourced from specialized suppliers. These materials have to balance strength, flexibility, and weight.
• Software and AI: Crucial for control, decision-making, and interaction. Development may be in-house or contracted to firms specializing in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotics software. 

Q: Are there any other key components I’ve missed? Who are the companies in these areas?

The graphic below is a shortlist of some of the players I’ve identified. Those that are publicly traded are highlighted in green.

If you have any thoughts/ideas or suggested refinements to this research or the company list, LMK. 

Are you bullish or bearish on humanoid robots? And why?

Final reminder: THIS IS NOT INVESTMENT ADVICE.

Side note: I know Tesla is working on a humanoid robot and that might be another way to invest in this market. I say this mostly so that Musk fan boys don’t go crazy. Thx.

Want to get smarter on humanoid robotics? Here's what's going on in the market in 5 charts courtesy of the data junkies at CB Insights.

AI gotta feeling

The Q2’24 venture results are in.

Funding climbed a tad while deals fell for the ninth straight quarter.

When we dig into the data, things get more interesting.

Of the $65.7B raised by startups in Q2’24, 28% went to AI startups.

This marks the highest quarterly funding share to AI on record.

That equates to $18.3B for AI startups in Q2’24 — a figure bolstered by mammoth deals to Elon Musk’s xAI as well as Scale, CoreWeave, and others.

Explore the trend in our State of Venture Q2’24 Report.

Fight club

Large retail banks and card companies are applying genAI in several ways.

One major use case they’ve found for the tech is in fraud detection.

JPMorgan Chase and Capital One are both early adopters in using genAI to fight fraud.

Mastercard also threw its hat in the ring when it announced its Decision Intelligence Pro solution in February 2024.

According to Mastercard’s CEO, the AI-powered Decision Intelligence Pro, which verifies the legitimacy of transactions, has already provided material benefits:

Dive deeper into AI strategies for Mastercard and its finserv peers in this report.

Picture of health

Sanofi is transforming how treatments are developed and delivered to patients.

For example, the pharma giant is establishing partnerships to speed up drug discovery using AI. 

These efforts extend across its core R&D focus areas, including immunology and oncology.

But drug discovery isn’t the only area of Sanofi’s strategy getting supercharged by AI.

Learn more about how it’s leveraging the tech in our Sanofi strategy map.

I love you. 

Anand 

@asanwal 

P.S. On July 11, our analyst is going to dive into key data from our State of Venture Q2’24 Report. Register today to join him.

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