Syncere Raises $11 Million to Scale Robotic Lamp Production

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Home robotics startup Syncere has secured $11 million in pre-seed investment for expanding production of LUME, an AI-powered robotic floor lamp that can do housework.

Syncere disclosed the funding on Nov. 3, naming a16z Speedrun, a unit of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, as the lead investor. Others investing in the round include Draper Associates, Physical World, Sequel and SeaX Ventures.

The investment will be used by the company for scaling up manufacturing and delivery, as well as improving its physical AI technology.

Unlike traditional humanoid robots, LUME integrates a floor lamp with a robotic arm, sensors and onboard computer systems, allowing the robot to act both as a lighting device and carry out physical actions.

Syncere claims the robot can fold laundry, clean rooms and make beds. It can also adapt to the preferences of users and get software updates for developing its capabilities.

The idea of the company is to introduce robots into houses through a household device rather than humanoid. Additionally, the company seeks to collect data from household interaction to improve AI models of robots.

LUME has a starting price of $2,699. According to the Silicon Valley Business Journal, Syncere has received roughly 1,500 paid preorders with an estimated value of $4.8 million. The amount collected from customers is yet to be disclosed.

Syncere has started delivering the robots to customers in San Francisco Bay, deliveries throughout the United States are scheduled for 2027.

Neither the current production capacity nor the production volume of Syncere has been revealed, nor does any independent evidence exist for the performance of LUME in doing everyday tasks.