A new robotics-focused company has been launched by Uber founder Travis Kalanick as he expands his interests beyond food technology and into automation. The company, called Atoms, aims to develop robotic systems for industries including food services, mining, and transportation, marking Kalanick’s latest move into emerging technology sectors.
Atoms will incorporate Kalanick’s existing ghost kitchen business, CloudKitchens, into the new venture. According to the company’s website, the startup plans to develop a “wheelbase for robots” that can power various types of machines. Speaking during a live interview with a technology platform on Friday, Kalanick said the company will focus on building specialized robots rather than humanoid machines. “Humanoids have their place, but there’s a lot of room for specialized robots that do things in an efficient, sort of industrial-scale kind of way, which is sort of where we play,” he said.
Kalanick also revealed that Atoms is close to acquiring Pronto, an autonomous vehicle startup designed for industrial and mining environments. The company was founded by Anthony Levandowski, a former Uber colleague of Kalanick. During the interview, Kalanick said he is already the “largest investor” in Pronto. He described industrial robotics as a major priority for the new company, stating, “The industrial thing is sort of like, probably, our main jam.” While Atoms may eventually explore broader applications, Kalanick suggested that using its technology for transporting people is not an immediate goal. “Once you crack movement in the physical world, there’s lots of people who want access to that,” he said.
Reports from a publication earlier suggested that Kalanick is also exploring a return to self-driving vehicle technology with support from Uber and may aim to deploy autonomous systems faster than Waymo. However, the Atoms website does not mention Uber. Previous discussions about acquiring the U.S. division of Chinese autonomous vehicle company Pony AI reportedly ended. Kalanick stepped down from Uber in 2017 following multiple controversies, including allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination within the company. Earlier, he had launched Uber’s self-driving division in 2015 with Levandowski, who later faced legal action related to trade secrets involving Google’s self-driving project. Levandowski was sentenced to 18 months in prison before receiving a pardon from President Donald Trump. Uber later sold its autonomous vehicle division to Aurora in 2020 under CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. In a 2025 interview, Kalanick expressed regret that Uber stopped developing its own self-driving cars.
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