Safeworld, a new company focused on ensuring the safety of generative AI-powered robots, has emerged from stealth today with a seed funding round exceeding $12 million. The investment was led by Shine Capital and a16z Speedrun, with additional contributions from Box Group, Carnegie Mellon University Endowment, Innovation Endeavors, and SV Angel.
Co-founded by Dr. Ding Zhao, director of the Safe AI lab at Carnegie Mellon University, veteran start-up executive Kyle Wong, and machine learning engineer Simo Rachidi, Safeworld aims to tackle the unpredictability of generative AI models in robotic control systems. The company specialises in evaluating these systems through simulations that incorporate realistic human models.
These simulations are designed to test how robots respond to various scenarios in unstructured environments, such as blind corners in factories or interactions with humans carrying boxes. Vishal Dugar, CTO of Gritt Robotics, whose company develops AI for robots assisting in solar farm installations, stated that verifying robot safety often requires empirical testing, as formal mathematical proofs can be challenging.
Jonathan Lai, a partner at a16z Speedrun, highlighted the importance of establishing industry safety standards now, before robots are widely deployed in households and potentially cause incidents.