Swiss Startup Swiss-Mile Raises $22 Million for Autonomous Robots

Swiss-Mile, a Zurich-based startup specializing in AI-powered robots, has secured $22 million in funding to advance its autonomous robot development. The funding round was led by Jeff Bezos’ investment firm, Bezos Expeditions, and Hongshan, the Chinese arm of Sequoia. Additional investors include the Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund and Armada Investment. Founded in April 2023, Swiss-Mile emerged from the Robotic Systems Lab at ETH Zurich. The company aims to create robots capable of automating tedious tasks, addressing the challenges of mobility, autonomy, and object manipulation. Early pilot projects are already undergoing rigorous testing in diverse real-world environments with beta customers. Swiss-Mile’s robots are designed with neural networks and either legs or wheels. The company employs a unique framework that integrates reinforcement and supervised learning, enabling robots to learn independently and adapt to real-world applications. Data collected from real and virtual environments continuously enhances the robots’ capabilities. Franziska Bossart, Head of the Industrial Innovation Fund at Amazon, highlighted the fund’s commitment to supporting Swiss-Mile, stating that the team recognized the potential of these technologies for Amazon.