What simply occurred? Agility Robotics, the corporate behind the Digit humanoid robotic utilized in Amazon warehouses will turn into the primary humanoid-focused firm to go public within the US this week. The Oregon firm closed its merger with Churchill Capital Corp XI on Wednesday, with shares anticipated to begin buying and selling on Nasdaq this week beneath AGLT.
Agility is taking the SPAC route, merging with a listed shell firm relatively than pursuing a conventional IPO. Churchill is led by former Citigroup govt Michael Klein, whose earlier offers embrace electrical automobile maker Lucid and nuclear energy firm Oklo.
Whereas it is a rising business, humanoid robots are nonetheless a relatively small enterprise within the tech world. Enterprise Insider reviews that Agility generated simply $1.8 million in income throughout 2025 whereas posting a $138.1 million web loss. Greater than half that income got here from 5 robots purchased by considered one of its buyers. Working money consumption reached $99.8 million.
One of many firm’s success tales has been Digit. Amazon started testing the robotic in 2023, initially utilizing it to maneuver empty totes, whereas GXO has additionally deployed the humanoid mahcine at a warehouse serving Spanx.
Extra work for the robotic is coming. AGCO plans to pilot Digit at its Hesston, Kansas, farm tools manufacturing unit in 2027, the place the machines will kind and stack elements and transfer totes.
Agility can be betting on the newest Digit 5 mannequin, designed to work safely close to individuals. It says dedicated multi-year orders exceed $300 million, though these orders rely upon contractual milestones.
China affords a cautionary instance of humanoid robotic makers going public. Reuters reported in September that regulators had been slowing some humanoid robotic listings after Unitree’s debut. Its shares surged greater than fivefold earlier than falling 55% from their peak. Authorities had been additionally scrutinizing whether or not gross sales tied to government-backed robotic coaching facilities mirrored sustainable demand.
There’s additionally the query of what widespread humanoid robotic adoption means for employees. Earlier this 12 months, Hyundai’s union warned that deploying the machines would deliver a “big employment shock,” demanding an settlement earlier than robots enter its workplaces. By August, employees had been in search of larger transparency and job protections, despite the fact that Hyundai’s preliminary Atlas rollout is deliberate for its nonunion Georgia manufacturing unit in 2028.
Some reassuring information for human employees arrived not too long ago when a 24-hour check of humanoid robots in a comfort retailer confirmed that two of them weren’t as much as the duty.
