EQT as Investor and Channel for 1X

This deal turns distribution into a financing advantage. Instead of 1X raising capital, then separately fighting for each enterprise customer, EQT supplies both the money and a preassembled buyer network of 300 plus portfolio companies. That gives 1X a faster way to place robots in real workplaces, gather task data, and prove repeatable ROI across many operating environments without building a large direct sales force from scratch.1 2 3 4

• The commercial channel is unusually concrete. Bloomberg reported in December 2025 that EQT planned to deploy 10,000 1X humanoid robots across its portfolio companies, and EQT’s current portfolio page shows the firm already controls a large operating base across industries and geographies.1 2
• This mirrors how early robotics markets often form, through one anchor network rather than broad open market demand. In warehouses and factories, deployments at Tesla, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and GXO have served as training grounds for Figure, Apptronik, and Optimus. 1X is applying that playbook through a private equity portfolio instead of a single manufacturer.3 5
• EQT is not just a reseller. It led 1X’s $100M Series B in January 2024 through EQT Ventures, then used its operating platform to create downstream demand. That matters because humanoid economics improve with fleet size. More deployed units mean more maintenance learnings, more teleoperation traces, and more chances to standardize workflows that later become software and services revenue.4 3 6

Going forward, the winners in humanoids are likely to be the companies that pair robot engineering with a captive rollout channel. If EQT can turn portfolio companies into repeatable deployment sites, 1X gets something more valuable than a headline order book, a controlled environment for scaling sales, data collection, and operating know how at the same time.1 2 3 6