Destro AI raises $8M to coordinate mixed robot fleets in enterprise warehouses

The software, called MothershipOS, sits outside any single robot and assigns each task across a fleet of machines built by different vendors, down to when and where the work happens. Mobile manipulation is handled on the robots by a second system, VisionOS, which is built on artificial intelligence models trained on human demonstrations to perceive and grasp objects. Customers can run equipment from several manufacturers under one system and swap hardware as their operations change.

Founder and Chief Executive Manthan Pawar said "everyone is building capable robots" and that he expects the next breakthrough to come from "the intelligence layer that enables any robot to work together." The company argues that with regulations and supply chains around robotics still shifting, warehouse operators will want an automation strategy that does not hang on one manufacturer.

Yusen Logistics (Americas) Inc. is the one customer Destro names. The logistics company said in August that it was deploying the platform in its transload operations. According to TechCrunch, the first pilot, at a Yusen facility in the Pacific Northwest, used three cart-moving robots built by Miva Robotics. That site is moving to a full deployment of 26 robots, and a 17-robot pilot is starting at a Yusen facility in Southern California.

Rick Brunelle, Yusen's director of automation, said the platform gives his teams "a new level of intelligence and control" across its transload workflows.

Destro is less than a year old and already booking revenue. Pawar told TechCrunch the company is "on path to be cash flow positive at the end of this year." Destro also says it has won head-to-head evaluations against competitors valued at $1 billion or more.

The founding team came from Hai Robotics Co. Ltd., Dexterity Inc. and Matic Robots Inc. Pawar holds a master's degree in robotics from New York University's Tandon School of Engineering.

Adeyemi Ajao, co-founder and managing partner at Base10, said Destro had two pilots running when the firm first met Pawar and was "live in production with some of the largest logistics operators in the country" a few months later. Jennifer Richard, a principal at Bonfire, said the firm has spent enough time around warehouses and logistics networks to know that operational complexity is where good ideas go to die, and that "the gap between a successful demo and a successful deployment is enormous."