US startup Origin raises $20M to build robots for construction

Origin, a San Francisco-based full-stack physical AI startup building general-purpose robots for interior construction, has emerged from stealth with USD 20 million in total funding, co-led by Accel and Zacua Ventures. Other backers include Unilazer Ventures, Schema Ventures, Z21, ISAI and Imad Ventures, alongside angel investors from Anduril, Skild AI, 1X and Tesla. 

The funding will primarily go toward deploying OG-1, Origin’s flagship robot, and building out its fleet. It will also support large-scale pilots with customers in the U.S. and Europe—including two of the largest drywall finishing contractors in the U.S., with additional pilots scheduled in Germany, Sweden, France and Saudi Arabia—and extend the platform to new interior trades, Origin said in a press release.

“Too many construction robots perform well in a lab and fail within a week on a live job site. Origin built for the job site from the start, and it shows in the results: the robot works, crews trust it and the company can manufacture it at volume,” said Vivin Hegde, founding partner at Zacua Ventures. “With the industry losing skilled tradespeople faster than it can train them, that reliability is what turns a promising technology into a company worth backing.”

OG-1 is Origin’s flagship robot, designed to perform multiple interior construction trades on a single platform. OG-1 can work long shifts and handle complex tasks, from targeted spraying and finishing high walls to handling difficult areas like corners, pillars, soffits and edges, the press release said. 

“We believe a foundational physical AI model built specifically for construction is the right approach to win in this massive market, where robotics has barely scratched the surface,” said Anagh Prasad, Investor at Accel. “The Origin team has moved at an incredible pace since we first partnered with them, and their early customer traction shows the technology is ready and the market is waiting.”  

“We think of Origin as a time machine for construction, helping crews complete work faster while moving the industry toward autonomous job sites,” said Yogesh Ghaturle, co-founder and CEO of Origin. “Wall finishing and painting are only our starting trades; our ambition is to automate the full range of interior trades so contractors can build faster with consistent quality.”