1X
1X builds humanoid robots for home use, aiming to create general-purpose robotic labor. The Palo Alto-based company has raised $136M, including a Series B in early 2026, and employs 1,106 people.
The growth story
1X grew from 42 to 1,106 employees between 2021 and 2026, raising $136M along the way, most recently a Series B in February 2026.
About
1X develops humanoid robots designed initially for household tasks, with broader ambitions to create versatile robotic workers. The company positions its technology as a solution for labor shortages through safe, AI-powered machines.
The robotics startup has scaled rapidly to over 1,100 employees and attracted funding from notable investors including OpenAI's startup fund and EQT Ventures. Its $136M total funding suggests strong investor confidence in humanoid robotics despite the technical challenges.
Founders and leadership
Engineering dominates 1X's workforce with 138 engineers, reflecting the technical complexity of humanoid robotics. The company maintains a relatively flat structure with median tenure of just one year, typical of fast-growing hardware startups.
The 1X org chart
Bernt Børnich (Founder and CEO) leads 59 mapped leaders with 7 direct reports. Click +N to expand a team; names link to the person’s public profile.
Departments, and which ones grew
Headcount by function: Engineering 222 (+54% YoY), Operations 221 (+86% YoY), Education 109 (+122% YoY), Information Technology 55 (+45% YoY), Administrative 32 (+100% YoY), Quality Assurance 31 (+121% YoY).
Talent flow
1X heavily recruits from Tesla (64 hires) and other tech giants like Apple and Amazon. Alumni frequently move to other robotics firms including Rhoda AI and Figure, or return to tech companies like NVIDIA and Meta.
Most common previous employers of 1X staff: Tesla (64), Apple (18), Amazon (13), Meta (13), Google (12), Rivian (8). Former 1X employees most often moved to Rhoda AI (6), Humanoid (5), NVIDIA (4), Figure (4), Tesla (4), Meta (4).
Alumni worth knowing
The 1X mafia
Eight 1X alumni have founded companies, including Physical Robotics and Nucleus Robotics, though most remain small. The largest spinoff is an unnamed startup with 3,476 employees founded by a single 1X alumnus.
8Karthik Bollam, was Staff Firmware Engineer until 2026Morten Lysgaard, was Senior Software Engineer until 2025Nicholas Nadeau, Ph.D., P.Eng., was Chief Technology Officer until 2023Phuong Nguyen, was Chief Science Officer, Co-founder until 2023Krzysztof Adam Szczurek, was Humanoid XR Teleoperation until 2025Sean Wade-McCue, was Mechanical Engineer until 2018
Andre Slavescu, was Research Engineer until 2026
Oliver Stark, was Team Lead, Hands until 2024Hiring now
Web traffic
Traffic mix: 45% direct, 42% search, 6% social, 1% paid.
What this company is made of
Most common skills at 1X: Microsoft Office (156), Python (Programming Language) (142), Microsoft Excel (135), Leadership (128), Communication (123), Customer Service (114), Project Management (110), SOLIDWORKS (98).
Where the team actually sits
1X people are concentrated in California, United States (151), San Francisco Bay Area (94), United States (26), Viken, Norway (26). 3 offices on record.
Search footprint
1X attracts about 20,320 organic search visits a month, traffic worth roughly $15K a month if bought through ads. It gained 655 ranking keywords and lost 478 in the last period.
What employees say
- Compensation
- 3.30 / 5
- Career opportunities
- 3.50 / 5
- Senior management
- 2.70 / 5
- Work-life balance
- 2.70 / 5
Frequently asked
1X has 1,106 employees as of September 2026.
1X has raised $136M in total, most recently a Series B round in February 2026.
1X was founded in 2015 by Bernt Børnich.
Bernt Børnich (Founder and CEO) sits at the top of 1X's reporting structure, with 7 direct reports.
The most common previous employers of current 1X staff are Tesla (64 people), Apple (18 people), Amazon (13 people).
Former 1X employees most often move to Rhoda AI (6), Humanoid (5), NVIDIA (4).
At least 8 companies have a founder who previously worked at 1X, including Startup, Handa, Onix.
1X attracts about 20,320 organic search visits a month, worth roughly $15K a month in equivalent ad spend.
The most common skills among 1X staff are Microsoft Office, Python (Programming Language), Microsoft Excel, Leadership, Communication.
1X staff are concentrated in California, United States (151), San Francisco Bay Area (94), United States (26).
1X has about 222 people in Engineering, up 54% over the past year, as of September 2026.
1X has about 221 people in Operations, up 86% over the past year, as of September 2026.
Computed from 359 current and 261 former 1X profiles, as of September 2026. Source: Crustdata.
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