HIVE Raises $15M to Turn Any Industrial Machine Into a Physical AI Robot
London-based HIVE raised a $15 million pre-Series A led by SuperSeed to scale its silicon brain, a foundational AI model and sensor kit that retrofits existing wheel loaders, excavators and forklifts into remote-supervised autonomous machines.
Key Takeaways
HIVE, a London and Norway-based physical AI startup, raised a $15M pre-Series A led by SuperSeed, with Veriten, Skyfall Ventures, Nysnø Climate Investments and angels including Børge Hald and Jørn Lyseggen.
Its 'silicon brain' — a foundational AI model plus camera and sensor kit — retrofits existing wheel loaders, excavators and forklifts into autonomous machines with optional remote teleoperation, rather than building new robots.
The system is already deployed in Scandinavia; on Norway's Vikafjellet mountain crossing, Presis Vegdrift uses a retrofitted wheel loader to clear avalanche zones remotely instead of putting an operator in a vulnerable cab.
Every deployed machine hour feeds a shared fleet-wide reinforcement-learning loop; CEO Christoffer Jørgensvaag expects this to cut productive machine-hour costs by up to 80%.
Funds will accelerate platform development, expand the founding team and support new commercial deployments, as physical AI becomes a defining robotics VC category heading into 2026.
Kaan Tınmaz
HIVE, a London and Norway-based physical AI startup, has raised a $15 million pre-Series A round to scale a foundational model and sensor kit it calls the silicon brain, which retrofits existing industrial machines for autonomous operation. SuperSeed led the round with participation from Veriten, Skyfall Ventures and Nysnø Climate Investments, alongside angels including Medallia founder Børge Hald and Meltwater founder Jørn Lyseggen.
A Silicon Brain For Legacy Fleets
HIVE describes its platform as an intelligence layer that unifies machine operations across sites. Rather than build a new robot, it retrofits standard wheel loaders, excavators and forklifts with cameras, sensors and its proprietary AI model, so a single vehicle can perceive its environment, decide on the next action and act autonomously, or hand control to a remote teleoperator.
From Vikafjellet Wheel Loaders To U.S. Expansion
The company has already deployed the silicon brain across several sites in Scandinavia. On Norways Vikafjellet mountain crossing, road operator Presis Vegdrift now uses a HIVE-retrofitted wheel loader to clear avalanche zones without waiting hours for geologists to approve human entry, according to the company. The operator supervises the machine remotely instead of sitting in a vulnerable cab.
HIVE plans to use the fresh capital to accelerate platform development, expand its founding team and roll out new commercial deployments with industrial partners. The commercial model is designed to compound value: every deployed machine hour feeds a shared reinforcement-learning loop across the fleet. CEO Christoffer Jørgensvaag said the company expects the loop to cut the productive machine-hour cost by as much as 80%.
Physical AI Investors Move In
The round lands as physical AI ramps into a defining category for 2026 robotics venture capital. It follows a wave of deals such as Mowitos $3M pre-seed for AI-driven robot arms, Bespoke Labs $40M for practice worlds and Robbyants LingBot-Vision embodied AI rollout. Mads Jensen, a managing partner at SuperSeed, said HIVEs silicon brain is powerful enough to retrofit existing industrial fleets and the intelligence compounds in value with every hour it runs, calling it the defining wave of physical AI for the next decade.
Reporting based on coverage from The Robot Report and Sifted.
It is a foundational AI model combined with cameras and sensors that retrofits standard industrial machines like wheel loaders, excavators and forklifts, enabling them to perceive their environment, decide on actions and operate autonomously or hand control to a remote teleoperator.
Who invested in HIVE's $15M round?
SuperSeed led the pre-Series A, joined by Veriten, Skyfall Ventures and Nysnø Climate Investments, plus angel investors including Medallia founder Børge Hald and Meltwater founder Jørn Lyseggen.
Where is HIVE's technology already in use?
Across several sites in Scandinavia, including Norway's Vikafjellet mountain crossing, where road operator Presis Vegdrift uses a HIVE-retrofitted wheel loader to clear avalanche zones under remote supervision without waiting for geologist approval for human entry.
How does HIVE plan to reduce machine operating costs?
Every deployed machine hour feeds a shared reinforcement-learning loop across the fleet, which CEO Christoffer Jørgensvaag says could cut the cost of a productive machine hour by as much as 80%.
