MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Dec. 17, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — RLWRLD, a Physical AI startup building robotics foundation models for real-world deployment, has won first place in the Foundation Models, Robot Brains and Runtime category at the 2025 Nebius Robotics & Physical AI Awards, a global competition recognizing early-stage companies advancing next-generation robotics and Physical AI.
Hosted by Nebius (NASDAQ: NBIS) and supported by NVIDIA, the awards were announced at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View as part of the inaugural Nebius Robotics & Physical AI Awards and Summit. The program awarded $1.5 million in AI cloud compute and inference credits to startups selected from more than 250 applicants across 60+ countries.
RLWRLD was selected as the top winner following evaluations by a judging panel that included leaders from NVIDIA, OpenAI, ABB, Physical Intelligence, and venture firms such as Khosla Ventures, Accel, Next47, and Shanda Grab Ventures. Judges assessed finalists on technical originality, scalability, and readiness for real-world deployment.
As the first-place winner in the Foundation Models category, RLWRLD received $150,000 in Nebius AI Cloud compute and inference credits, accelerated by NVIDIA AI infrastructure.
The Nebius Robotics & Physical AI Awards were created to spotlight startups building the models and systems required to deploy Physical AI in real industrial environments. Sixteen companies were recognized across categories spanning Foundation Models, Simulation, Robot Runtime, Industrial Deployment, and Vision AI.
RLWRLD’s work focuses on building robot foundation models designed for high-difficulty manipulation and reliable industrial deployment, rather than technology demonstrations for general-purpose robotics. At the core of its platform is RLDX, a proprietary robotics foundation model capable of controlling a 15-degree-of-freedom robotic hand, enabling precise manipulation tasks that require human-level dexterity.
Judges also cited RLWRLD’s use of high-fidelity, multimodal industrial data and its active collaboration with industry partners as indicators of the company’s commercial readiness, particularly for manufacturing and logistics environments where reliability and precision are critical.
“Winning this category reinforces our belief that Physical AI needs foundation models built for the real world, not just controlled demos,” said Jung-hee Ryu, CEO of RLWRLD. “This recognition reflects the progress we’ve made working directly with industry partners to deploy our technology.”
Following the award, RLWRLD plans to expand global partnerships and accelerate commercial deployment of its foundation models across humanoid and industrial robotics, with a focus on manufacturing and logistics environments in the U.S. and Asia.
About RLWRLD
Founded in 2024, RLWRLD is a Physical AI startup developing robot foundation models that enable machines to see, sense, and act with human-like dexterity and cognition. The company operates across the United States, South Korea, and Japan, and trains its models using high-precision 4D+ multimodal industrial data collected through a proprietary multi-sensor capture system. RLWRLD is currently working with major manufacturing partners in South Korea and Japan and aims to become a global leader in industrial robotics AI.
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