Nvidia has doubled down on the opportunity to build robotics and other industrial AI applications, with the launch of its Omniverse platform, and more recently Mega, an Omniverse Blueprint framework to create digital twins to operate these applications. It is also investing in digital twin startups to get the effort off the ground.
Taiwan’s MetAI has developed a model that can quickly generate “SimReady” (simulation-ready) digital twins using AI and 3D technology, converting CAD files into functional 3D environments within minutes.
Now Nvidia is backing MetAI in its first round of funding, a seed round of $4 million that becomes the chip giant’s first investment in a Taiwanese startup. Others in the round are a mix of other strategic and financial investors, including Kenmec Mechanical Engineering, Solomon Technology, SparkLabs Taiwan, Addin Ventures and Upstream Ventures.
The next wave of AI, known as generative physical AI, relies on physically accurate simulated environments to train and validate robots used in autonomous systems, to build operational AI before deployment. MetAI claims that the digital twins it helps create will be central to this effort.
“Digital twins have long been seen as a barrier to entry for physical AI because of the months or even years of development effort required,” Daniel Yu, CEO and co-founder of MetAI, said in an interview.
MetAI focuses on AI-powered digital twins tailored for advanced semiconductor factories, smart warehouses and automation. It also generates synthetic data within AI-enabled digital twin environments.
Renton Hsu, Yu’s co-founder and CTO of MetAI, has a background in 3D engineering and AI, and he first started working with digital twins while building AI software applications for enterprises: they were used as a practical solution in situations where customers lacked sufficient data to train their systems. He then realized he could apply the same to 3D systems, integrating 3D technology with AI to develop synthetic AI and 3D solutions, joining forces with Yu (who comes to the startup with experience in digital transformation projects) and a third co-founder, Dave. Liu (COO), to start MetAI.
The progress was enough to win first place in a competition run by Nvidia, making Hsu a “Jetson AI ambassador” for the country.
MetAI’s competitors are a variety of large and small companies that have built digital twin technologies for manufacturing. They include Siemens Digital Industries, Dassault Systemes, Hexagon AB, Duality AI and Intagles. In the synthetic data sector, there are many companies, including Sky Engine and Scale AI.
MetAI believes it has a unique approach compared to all of these.
“Unlike competitors that prioritize operational efficiency or IoT integrations, MetAI uses generative models and AI-driven representations to create digital twins designed for physical AI training and implementation in real-world operations,” said Yu. “This approach not only accelerates the creation of digital twins, but also ensures their direct usability for advanced automation systems such as robotics, bridging the gap between simulation and reality.”
MetAI differentiates itself by producing artificial data within its AI-enabled digital twin environments. Yu noted that it enables users to generate customized synthetic data for specific operational requirements, facilitating AI training and validation. “Instead of creating isolated datasets, MetAI builds dynamic virtual worlds (ie, world simulators) – realistic virtual environments that function exactly like the real world,” he said.
The two-year-old startup — whose products range from vertical AI agents to digital twins — has a handful of customers and is already generating revenue from partnerships with enterprises in the manufacturing and automation industries, and this year expects to bring $3 million from a single project, Yu said. Revenue is derived from project-based revenue, product subscriptions and licensing fees from ongoing developments, he added.
“The integration of MetAI with NVIDIA Omniverse represents a transformative step forward for industrial digital twins and physical AI in simulations,” Nico Caprez, Nvidia’s corporate development manager, said in a statement. “Their ability to create scalable AI training environments will potentially set a new standard for industries ranging from manufacturing to robotics.”
In 2023, MetAI partnered with Kenmec to create digital twins for automated warehouses. MetAI’s technology claims to have drastically reduced the time required for digital twin warehouse simulations from thousands of hours to just 3 minutes, resulting in significant savings in operational and verification tasks.
With the latest funding, MetAI plans to expand its R&D team for faster development and execution of its go-to-market strategies to meet growing demand. Additionally, the Taiwan-based startup aims to establish a US office and move its headquarters in the second half of 2025, Yu told TechCrunch.
“Taiwan serves as our testing ground, where we collaborate with Taiwanese industry leaders to integrate deep vertical insights into our designs, ensuring our solutions are sustainable and scalable,” said Liu. “Given its size and the demand for simulation-driven solutions, we are expanding the US market due to high labor costs and operational complexity. Our expansion strategy focuses on providing end-to-end solutions and solutions, including SaaS offerings and vertical AI agents designed for rapid implementation in real-world scenarios within these industries.”
