Sanctuary AI
Sanctuary AI is a Humanoid company founded in 2018 and based in Vancouver, Canada. It has raised $140M in total funding, most recently a Series A in 2022.
Sanctuary AI (legally Sanctuary Cognitive Systems Corporation) is a Vancouver, British Columbia-based humanoid robotics company founded in 2018 by Geordie Rose (co-founder of D-Wave and Kindred), Suzanne Gildert, Olivia Norton, and Ajay Agrawal. The company builds Phoenix, a general-purpose humanoid robot, and Carbon, its in-house AI control system. Sanctuary differentiates with hydraulic dexterous hands and a strong focus on human-like manipulation.
Sanctuary has raised over $140 million to date, including a C$75.5M (US$58.5M) Series A in 2022 with investors including Bell, Magna International, Evok Innovations, Export Development Canada, SE Health, Verizon Ventures, and Workday Ventures. The company received a C$30M contribution from the Canadian federal Strategic Innovation Fund, and in 2024 announced a strategic partnership with Magna International for co-development and deployment in automotive manufacturing.
Sanctuary has experienced meaningful leadership turbulence: co-founder Suzanne Gildert departed in April 2024, and co-founder and CEO Geordie Rose stepped down in November 2024. Chief Commercial Officer James G. Wells was appointed interim CEO and subsequently confirmed as permanent CEO. Reports from early 2025 indicated the company was raising a ~US$10M convertible note to extend runway through fiscal 2025.
Sanctuary is Canada's flagship humanoid player, pushing the frontier on dexterous manipulation and general cognition — but recent leadership churn and a smaller capital base make its commercial trajectory the most uncertain of the US/Canadian cohort.
sanctuary.ai ↗·Humanoid·
Canada·private 
