Baraja vs Figure AI

Figure AI has a disclosed valuation of $39B, while Baraja's valuation is not publicly available, making a direct size comparison difficult. Figure AI employs 450 people.

Figure AI has raised more in total funding at $1.9B, compared to Baraja's $32M — a gap of $1.9B. Combined, the two companies have completed 7 known funding rounds.

Figure AI leads with an Awaira Score of 95/100, while Baraja sits at 50/100. That 45-point gap reflects real differences in funding, scale, and traction — it's not a vanity metric.

Baraja was founded by Federico Collarte in 2016. Figure AI was founded by Brett Adcock in 2022. Visit each company's profile on Awaira for a full founder biography.

Baraja: Baraja develops a novel lidar technology called Spectrum-Scan that steers laser beams using the natural dispersion of light through a prism rather than mechanical rotating mirrors or solid-state optical phased arrays, producing a solid-state lidar architecture that is more reliable and cost-effective than mechanical lidar alternatives for autonomous vehicle and robotics applications. The Sydney company holds fundamental patents on the Spectrum-Scan approach that provide IP protection across the lidar market.\n\nThe company raised approximately $32 million in venture funding including a Series B from investors including Main Sequence Ventures, Blackbird Ventures, and the CSIRO Development Fund. Baraja has engaged with automotive OEMs and autonomous vehicle companies in the United States and Asia for sensor evaluation, with the Spectrum-Scan lidar offering adjustable range and resolution properties that allow the sensor field of view to be customised for different driving scenarios.\n\nBaraja competes in the automotive lidar market against Velodyne, Luminar, Ouster, and Innoviz, a market that has seen significant consolidation and several company failures as autonomous vehicle development timelines extended and procurement volume projections were revised downward. Its IP position around the Spectrum-Scan technology provides a differentiation that mechanical lidar alternatives cannot access, and the solid-state reliability argument is increasingly relevant for automotive customers requiring the sensor lifetime and production scalability that mechanically rotating lidar systems cannot guarantee. Figure AI: Figure AI is a robotics company founded in 2022 that develops humanoid robots designed for industrial and commercial applications. The company focuses on creating general-purpose robots capable of performing complex physical tasks in real-world environments. Figure AI's primary technology centers on advanced robotics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning systems that enable autonomous operation and human-robot collaboration. The company has raised $1.9 billion in funding across multiple rounds, achieving a valuation of $39 billion as of its Series C stage, reflecting significant investor confidence in the humanoid robotics sector. This valuation places Figure AI among the most valuable robotics startups globally. The company's approach emphasizes practical deployment in industries facing labor shortages and operational challenges. Figure AI competes in the growing humanoid robotics market alongside companies developing similar technologies. The company's competitive positioning is strengthened by substantial capital resources enabling rapid research and development. Figure AI has demonstrated prototypes and engaged with potential enterprise customers across manufacturing, logistics, and service sectors, though specific customer details remain largely confidential. The company's growth trajectory reflects the broader acceleration in AI-enabled robotics investment. Figure AI's development timeline suggests advancement toward commercial deployment, with the robotics industry expecting increased real-world implementations in the coming years. Figure AI has achieved unicorn status within two years of founding, indicating rapid progress in humanoid robotics commercialization despite the sector's technical complexity.

Baraja got there first, launching in 2016 — that's 6 years of extra runway. Figure AI didn't arrive until 2022. In AI, that kind of head start means more training data, deeper customer relationships, and a bigger talent moat.

Baraja has about 100-500 employees; Figure AI has about 450. A bigger team usually means more revenue or heavier VC backing, but in AI, small teams can build at massive scale.

Yes — they're direct rivals. Both Baraja and Figure AI compete in AI Robotics, targeting many of the same buyers. If you're evaluating one, you should be looking at the other.