OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is backing a “discreet” physical artificial intelligence (AI) start-up led by former Tesla and Meta employees, the latest sign that investors are increasingly turning to the robotics sector, writes Business Insider (BI).
The startup, called Alfred, is also funded by Khosla Ventures, SV Angel, Chapter One and others, according to internal documents reviewed by the US publication. The startup aims to raise funds at a $40 million valuation, co-founder Ankit Ukil told BI.
Alfred is led by Ukil, a former Tesla designer, and Dömötör Gulyas, a former engineer at Meta Reality Labs.
Alfred is asserting himself as investors have started to spend more money in the physical artificial intelligence sector, a category focused on integrating AI into machines that move in the real world – such as robots or cars. In April alone, physical AI startups raised about $5.3 billion in venture capital funding, according to Crunchbase data.
Big tech companies are also flocking to bet on the robotics arms race. At Nvidia GTC Taipei on Sunday, the company announced a plan for a standard humanoid robot for academic researchers that is expected to be available in late 2026.
Over the weekend, Altman posted a message on the social network X in which he stated that robotics is the next frontier for his company, OpenAI.
“In the short term, we're focused on robots to support skilled workers in building our future infrastructure; in the long term, we envision everyone having a personal robot to do everything they need,” Altman wrote in the message.
In addition to investing in OpenAI, Altman also supports other startups in this field. He invested in Alfred through his venture capital firm, Hydrazine Capital.
Ankit Ukil stated that he and Altman initially bonded over a shared passion for cars. “He's a big car enthusiast,” Ukil said. “I met Sam a while ago, and he believed in me even before the company existed.”
Altman was filmed driving an extremely rare $5 million Koenigsegg Rivera in Napa in 2024.
Altman and OpenAI did not respond to the financial publication's requests for comment on information about the Alfred startup.
Alfred Company's ultimate goal
The rest of the team at Alfred includes designers and engineers from Tesla, Ford and Honda, according to the cited documents. The startup was founded 9 months ago, according to Ukil's LinkedIn profile, and is based in Hawthorne, California, across from the SpaceX factory where Falcon rockets are made.
The founders are pitching investors a software platform that helps engineers build cars faster.
Alfred's ultimate goal is for its product to speed up the manufacturing process by reducing the length of research and development steps. That way, engineers can skip routine work and focus on things like adding new and exciting features to cars, such as those often found in the latest Chinese electric vehicles, Ankit said.
Ukit told BI that Alfred's core platform is under development and that the startup is in “active discussions” with automakers, defense and robotics companies, without naming them.
Over the past 15 years, Altman has made more than 170 investments, according to PitchBook data. Among them is the investment fund Hydrazine Capital, through which it invested in Alfred.
Altman doesn't own shares in OpenAI, but his venture investments, including stakes in Stripe, Reddit and Helion Energy, have helped make him a billionaire.
