Qatari fund buys stake in US robot maker Apptronik

The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has participated in a $520 million funding round for Texas-based humanoid robot manufacturer Apptronik.

The sovereign wealth fund invested alongside Google, Mercedes-Benz and others in the round, which valued Apptronik at $5 billion, Reuters reported.

Humanoid robots generally resemble the human form, and are being developed to carry out multiple tasks in a complex environment without human intervention.

Apptronik plans to use the fresh capital to develop new versions of its Apollo robot, ramp up production and expand its workforce.

While not yet ready for mass deployment, humanoid robots are an emerging technology that is quickly gathering momentum, including in the Middle East.

The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute estimates that the QIA manages assets worth $557 billion.

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QIA has made a series of investments in advanced technology in recent years. In 2026 alone, it has invested in Elon Musk’s AI company xAI and made a “strategic investment” in US-based chipmaker Positron.

In late 2025 QIA participated in a $13 billion funding round for US AI company Anthropic.

Tesla and Nvidia-backed Figure AI are trying to build and deploy humanoid robots at scale. UK-based startup Humanoid has struck a distribution deal in Saudi Arabia for that company’s robot when it is ready.