Pasadena’s Embodied Gets $22 Million to Develop Wellness Care Robots

Embodied Inc., a Pasadena-based robotics and AI company developing a software platform and companion robots to revolutionize care and wellness for families and individuals, has raised $22 million in a Series A financing led by Calibrate Ventures with new major investor JAZZ Venture Partners, the company said in a press release Monday.

Embodied Inc. was co-founded by Paolo Pirjanian, former CTO of iRobot (Nasdaq IRBT) and Maja Matari?, chaired professor of Computer Science, Neuroscience and Pediatrics at USC.

“We are developing a software and robotics platform that will enhance and enrich the lives of individuals and their families,” Pirjanian, now Embodied CEO, said in the press release. “Our technology delivers measurable benefits through interactions with individuals, and we will use proceeds from our financing to continue adding to our exceptional team of robotics and AI experts, neuroscientists, and creative animators.”

With the new investment, Jason Schoettler from Calibrate Ventures and Andrew Firlik from JAZZ Venture Partners will be joining Embodied’s board of directors.

“Having previously backed Paolo at Evolution Robotics before it was acquired by iRobot, we have been inspired by his vision for how mankind can benefit from socially aware and engaging robots, and we are delighted to support the Embodied team as they work to create a remarkably transformative experience,” Schoettler said.

Existing Embodied investors include Osage University Partners, Intel Capital, Grishin Robotics and others.

The company’s world-class team of experts includes its CTO, Dr. Stefan Scherer, who is an expert in machine learning for computational behavior analysis, and CCO Craig Allen, who is a successful veteran from the video gaming industry. Scherer and Allen are leading Embodied’s efforts to change the status-quo by creating emotionally intelligent, life-like robots that provide care.

“Having previously backed Paolo at Evolution Robotics before it was acquired by iRobot, we have been inspired by his vision for how mankind can benefit from socially aware and engaging robots, and we are delighted to support the Embodied team as they work to create a remarkably transformative experience,” says Calibrate Ventures partner Jason Schoettler.

For more information about Embodied, Inc., visit www.embodied.me.