Editorial Standards & Methodology
Last updated: November 5, 2026
About this page
The Robotic Life tracks the business of humanoid robots: who is building them, who is funding them, and how investors can get exposure. This page explains where our numbers come from, how we keep them current, and what we do when we get something wrong.
If you cite our data, this is the page that backs it up.
How we source figures
Every number we publish traces to a named source, and every volatile number carries a date.
- Primary sources first. Company press releases, SEC and exchange filings, and fund issuer pages come before news coverage. We use major outlets when a primary source isn’t available, and we name the outlet.
- No aggregator-only figures. If a number appears only on a data aggregator or an unsourced site, we don’t publish it.
- Dated figures. Prices, fund data, valuations and funding totals are marked “as of” a specific date. Articles that cite fund figures note: “Figures as of [date]. For current fund data, see our Robotics ETF tracker.”
- Reported vs. confirmed. Funding rounds or valuations reported in the press but not confirmed by the company are labeled as reported, or held back until confirmed.
- Units. We use U.S. dollars and imperial units by default, and show the original currency (for example, RMB) when it matters.
Funding Tracker rules
The Humanoid Robotics Funding Tracker counts disclosed outside capital raised by humanoid robotics companies. It is updated monthly, and each update is verified company by company.
- What counts: equity raised from outside investors in disclosed rounds, as announced by the company or reported by a named outlet.
- What doesn’t count: internally funded programs at large corporations (for example, Tesla’s Optimus or Xiaomi’s humanoid work). We note their spending separately and keep it out of the sector total.
- Undisclosed amounts: rounds with no disclosed amount appear on the company’s card but add nothing to the total.
- Public companies: once a company lists on a stock exchange, its card is frozen at its pre-listing figures. We don’t track market capitalization, since it changes daily. Look up the live price instead.
- Monthly audit: at each update, every card is checked against the company’s full round history since its last verified date, not only that month’s news.
Deployment stages
Every company on our Companies page carries one of four stage labels. Stage refers to the humanoid platform only. Several companies ship other robots commercially (Boston Dynamics’ Spot, Pudu’s service robots, JAKA’s cobots) while their humanoid is at an earlier stage.
| Stage | What it means |
|---|---|
| R&D | Research program. No product offered for sale. |
| Prototype | Working hardware demonstrated. Not sold, not deployed at customer sites. |
| Pilot | Units operating at customer sites under trial or limited agreement. |
| Commercial | Available to order and ship to any buyer. |
A company moves up a stage only when a company announcement or named report confirms it. Demo videos alone don’t count.
Robot profiles and the ETF tracker
Robot profiles. Specs come from the manufacturer’s own website, spec sheets and announcements. Where a manufacturer hasn’t published a figure, we leave it out or label it as an estimate (for example, “Est.” on prices). We’re re-checking older profiles against manufacturer sources, and we update a profile when the company releases a new version.
Robotics ETF tracker. Fund data (expense ratios, index, inception date, top holdings) comes from each fund issuer’s website. Holdings change when funds rebalance, so holdings are shown with the date they were pulled.
Corrections
When we get a fact wrong, we fix it and say so.
- Errors of fact (a wrong number, date, name or stage) are corrected in place, with a dated note explaining what changed.
- New developments after publication, such as a deal closing or a funding round confirmed, are added as a dated update rather than rewriting the original.
- Older figures marked “as of” a date are not silently updated. Current numbers live on our trackers.
Spotted an error? Email ltalbert@theroboticlife.com and we’ll review it within two business days.
How we use AI
We use AI tools as research and production assistants, not as the source of facts. A person checks every published figure against its source.
- Where AI helps: gathering and organizing research, first drafts of some reports and guides, building charts from verified data, and checking our work for errors and inconsistencies.
- Where it doesn’t: AI output is never cited as a source. Figures it surfaces are traced back to a filing, release or named report before they run.
- Freelance articles: our freelance contributors write their own articles. Each draft is reviewed and fact-checked before publishing.
- Final say: Lars Talbert reviews and approves everything published on The Robotic Life.
Disclosures
- Not investment advice. Everything on The Robotic Life is for information and education. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Do your own research or talk to a licensed advisor before investing.
- Personal holdings. Lars Talbert discloses any personal position in a company or fund within the article that covers it.
- No paid coverage. Companies don’t pay for coverage, rankings or placement on our trackers. If that ever changes, sponsored content will be clearly labeled.
- Independence. The Robotic Life is self-funded and has no outside investors.
Contact
Questions about our data, a correction, or a request to use our charts: ltalbert@theroboticlife.com.