Raise Robotics

About Raise Robotics

Raise Robotics, founded in 2021 by CEO Gary Chen and COO Conley Oster, is a construction robotics company focused on enhancing on-site safety and productivity. The company's inception was driven by a mission to move workers out of harm's way, a sentiment that arose from a near-miss incident involving Oster's crew. This mission is fueled by the founders' combined expertise: Chen's background includes experience at Waymo and other robotics startups, while Oster brings extensive construction knowledge from his time as a technical project manager at Bigge Crane and Rigging Co.

The San Francisco-based firm develops semi-autonomous, multi-purpose robots designed to perform high-risk tasks on construction sites. Primarily serving contractors, particularly those in the timber and facade installation sectors, Raise Robotics aims to address labor shortages, cost overruns, and safety hazards. The business model currently involves deploying these robotic systems with their own teams, but the long-term goal is to transition to a model where they train contractors to use the technology independently. The company has secured significant seed funding, with its latest round in August 2025 raising $7.8 million, led by MaC Venture Capital, bringing its total funding to over $20 million.

The core of their offering is a versatile robotic platform that can handle tasks typically performed in dangerous conditions, such as at the edge of building slabs. Its capabilities include the precise installation and inspection of facade bracket systems, drilling, laser measurement, and construction layout. For instance, the robot can achieve an accuracy of up to 1/16 inch, which eliminates costly rework. A notable achievement was the completion of the curtainwall layout for over 10,000 glass panels at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a project that showcased the robot's precision and efficiency. The system is designed to be robust, capable of operating in extreme temperatures, and modular, with future versions planned for use on scissor or boom lifts to expand its reach.