Motion Raises €1.7M for Humanoid Robotics-as-a-Service

Brussels-based startup Motion has successfully closed a €1.7 million pre-Seed funding round, aiming to accelerate the adoption of humanoid robots across European industries. The investment, spearheaded by Extantia Capital with participation from Norrsken Evolve, will fuel the company's expansion from pilot programs to full-scale production and bolster its robot fleet. This capital injection signals strong investor confidence in Motion's novel Humanoids-as-a-Service (HaaS) model, designed to dismantle barriers to automation.

The core of Motion's offering addresses what its founder, Alexander Stevens, identifies as a significant "robot adoption problem" in Europe. This challenge, he explains, is less about the technological capability of robots and more about the complexities of financing, risk management, and regulatory compliance. Motion's platform simplifies this by providing a comprehensive, all-inclusive monthly fee that covers everything from initial data assessment and robot selection to ongoing fleet management, maintenance, insurance, and IT integration. This approach effectively transforms the acquisition of advanced robotics into a predictable operational expense, akin to hiring human staff.

Extantia Capital, through its Partner Yair Reem, views Motion's mission as critical for the broader climate transition. Reem highlighted that scaling the production of clean technologies, such as batteries and heat pumps, is fundamentally a physical undertaking requiring enhanced manufacturing capacity. He noted that labor shortages and production inefficiencies are increasingly hindering industrial growth. By supporting Motion, Extantia aims to invest in the essential infrastructure needed to expedite the deployment of climate solutions while simultaneously enhancing the efficiency and global competitiveness of European manufacturing.

Founded in 2026, Motion differentiates itself through an OEM-agnostic approach, allowing it to select the most suitable humanoid robots for specific tasks from various manufacturers. This flexibility ensures optimal performance and cost-effectiveness for clients. Furthermore, the company emphasizes a collaborative deployment model where its field engineers guide customers through the entire process. Crucially, while customers benefit from the collective deployment experience across Motion's network, their operational data remains securely housed within Motion's European software infrastructure, with robust cybersecurity measures integrated into every deployment.

The company's strategic vision includes expanding its robot fleet significantly, aiming to deploy hundreds of units across the Benelux region and subsequently throughout Europe within the next twelve months. Beyond direct client deployments, Motion is also launching a partner program. This initiative invites system integrators and automation specialists to leverage Motion's HaaS platform to offer robotic solutions to their own customer bases, further amplifying the reach and impact of humanoid automation across the continent's industrial sectors.

The European robotics market is experiencing robust growth, driven by a persistent need for increased productivity and efficiency in the face of demographic shifts and labor market challenges. While the industrial robotics sector has seen substantial investment, the emergence of humanoid robots as a service represents a significant evolution, lowering the barrier to entry for small and medium-sized enterprises. Motion's success in securing this pre-Seed funding underscores the market's appetite for innovative solutions that demystify and democratize access to advanced automation technologies.