Heavy industry robotics company KEWAZO announces new funding round

KEWAZO, known for its lifting robot LIFTBOT in heavy industries, announced a new funding round backed by Chevron Technology Ventures, Asahi Kasei, Benson Capital, Mana Ventures, Gaingels and Atlas Ventures.

The new investment, alongside lead investor Schooner Capital and existing investors True Ventures and Cybernetix Ventures, brings the company’s funding to $35 million.

Enabling physical AI in industrial sites

KEWAZO said that its lifting robot LIFTBOT is already deployed at more than 20 industrial sites in North America and Europe, including refineries, petrochemical plants, chemical complexes and power facilities.

The company said that asset owners and service providers are increasingly adopting LIFTBOT to replace cranes and manual handling - improving safety and efficiency while bringing greater schedule predictability to maintenance, turnaround, and capital projects.

“Our clients hear about robotics, but they rarely see robots operating at their plants,” said Artem Kuchukov, co-founder & CEO. “KEWAZO changes that. We help industrial asset owners adopt automation by delivering instant value in vertical material movement, and many clients already ask us to expand into additional workflows. With the support of Schooner Capital, Chevron Technology Ventures, Asahi Kasei and our existing investors, we’re accelerating this shift.”

KEWAZO said that its LIFTBOT deployments grant the company access to high-barrier industrial environments, enabling it to collect structured operational data. This forms the foundation of KEWAZO’s Physical AI platform, designed to introduce transparency today and enable automation tomorrow.

“Robotics and automation are transforming industrial operations, mirroring the adoption of AI across the economy,” said Alexandra Manick, managing director at Schooner Capital. “KEWAZO is perfectly positioned to lead the charge in heavy industry, as evidenced by the team’s technical depth and strong commercial execution. We are proud to lead this round and support their continued expansion and vision.”

KEWAZO is also a member of the Skyeforge Alliance, an organization of construction and heavy industry robotics companies developing Westvue NY.

The project is a proposed 24-story residential development in Manhattan that looks to integrate advanced AI and robotics to deliver high-quality housing.