Nvidia has made its first investment in a Taiwanese startup, backing MetAI, which specializes in creating AI-powered digital twins. MetAI secured $4 million in its seed round, attracting funding from a mix of strategic and financial investors, including Nvidia, Kenmec Mechanical Engineering, Solomon Technology, SparkLabs Taiwan, Addin Ventures, and Upstream Ventures. The startup’s breakthrough lies in its ability to transform CAD files into simulation-ready digital twins in minutes, a process that traditionally takes months or even years.
The investment aligns with Nvidia’s growing focus on industrial AI applications, particularly through its Omniverse platform. MetAI’s technology complements Nvidia’s recently introduced Mega framework, designed to create digital twins for robotics and autonomous systems. These efforts highlight the next wave of AI, generative physical AI, which relies on highly accurate simulations to train robots before deployment.
A New Approach to Digital Twins
MetAI stands out in a competitive market by focusing on AI-driven digital twins tailored to industries like semiconductor manufacturing, smart warehouses, and automation. Unlike competitors such as Siemens Digital Industries and Dassault Systèmes, MetAI leverages generative AI models to create digital twins designed explicitly for training physical AI systems. This innovative approach bridges the gap between simulation and real-world operations.
“Digital twins have long been seen as a barrier to entry for physical AI due to the months or even years of effort required for development,” said Daniel Yu, CEO and co-founder of MetAI. “Our approach accelerates this process while ensuring direct usability for advanced automation systems.”
Collaboration and Achievements
Founded by Daniel Yu, Renton Hsu, and Dave Liu, MetAI has already made significant strides. Hsu, with a background in 3D engineering and AI, previously developed enterprise AI applications before co-founding MetAI. The team’s innovative work earned them first place in an Nvidia competition, cementing Hsu’s role as a “Jetson AI ambassador” for Taiwan.
MetAI has collaborated with Kenmec to create digital twins for automated warehouses, reducing simulation times from thousands of hours to just three minutes. This efficiency has translated into significant operational savings. With only a handful of customers, the startup expects to generate $3 million in revenue from a single project this year.
Plans for Expansion
With the latest funding, MetAI plans to expand its R&D team, accelerate its go-to-market strategies, and establish a U.S. office by late 2025. “Taiwan serves as our testing ground,” said COO Dave Liu. “However, given the U.S. market’s size and demand for simulation-driven solutions, our expansion strategy focuses on providing both point solutions and end-to-end offerings.”
Nvidia views MetAI’s technology as a game-changer for industrial digital twins. “Their ability to create scalable environments for AI training will potentially set a new standard for industries ranging from manufacturing to robotics,” said Nico Caprez, corporate development manager at Nvidia.
With its innovative approach and Nvidia’s backing, MetAI is poised to transform how industries adopt AI-driven automation systems.
Featured image courtesy of Nvidia
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