University of Pennsylvania spinout Ghost Robotics has sold a 60% stake in the company for $240 million to a South Korean defense technology firm.
The deal with Seoul-based LIG Nex1 closed on Monday and values Ghost Robotics at $400 million. The company will maintain its headquarters in Philadelphia.
Founded in 2015, Ghost Robotics is the maker of four-legged "robot dogs" that are adept at navigating difficult terrain and are used by a mix of commercial and military clients. They can carry sensors, communications technology or data collection devices to perform tasks in areas difficult for humans to operate in, though the company has received criticism for allowing the weaponization of the robots.
Based at Pennovation Works in Grays Ferry, Ghost Robotics was founded by Avik De, Gavin Kenneally and the late Jiren Parkh. The company currently has 62 employees, all of which will be retained following the ownership change, according to Kenneally. The leadership team will also remain intact.
Ghost Robotics has a range of big names as customers, including AT&T, Verizon and Honeywell, along with Malvern-based Rajant. In total, it says it has more than 25 national security customers and over 20 "solutions partners."
LIG Nex1 is a global defense company that has products including weapons systems, drones, avionics, surveillance technology and other wartime technologies. It reports annual revenue of over $1.6 billion.
The South Korean firm will help to quickly scale production of the robots, according to Keannally, while Ghost Robotics' existing team will focus on engineering, research and development.
Ghost Robotics declined to share revenue or growth numbers, though the robot dogs cost $165,000 apiece and the company says it has shipped more than 450 to its customers.
The Philadelphia startup has drawn criticism and was the subject of pro-Palestinian protests in the spring after reports that the Israeli Army was using the company's robots in the war in Gaza. A group called "Shut Down Ghost Robotics" was formed and petitioned for Penn to evict and cut ties with the company, gathering over 3,200 signatures.
In 2022, the Department of Homeland Security announced it was working with Ghost Robotics to create a robot dog to patrol the southern border.
Kenneally said in a statement to the Business Journal that the company's flagship product, the Vision 60 Q-UGV "is truly a dual-use product, having life-saving applications with U.S. and Allied governments, as well as improving safety and efficiency for our industrial customers in oil and gas, mining, and construction."
A main competitor of Ghost Robotics is Boston Dynamics, which has filed a pair of lawsuits against Ghost Robotics claiming that the Philadelphia startup infringes on its patents. The most recent of the lawsuits came in February, and the first was filed in November 2022, which Ghost Robotics at the time called "baseless." Separately in 2022, Boston Dynamics, along with other robotics companies, pledged not to weaponize their robots, and Ghost Robotics did not sign the letter, according to Axios.
