Panel at the 2025 Humanoids Summit featuring (l to r) James Wells, Sanctuary AI CEO; Modar Alaoui, ALM Ventures general partner and Humanoids Summit founder and chair; and Rafe Rosner-Uddin, Financial Times San Francisco correspondent. Credit: The Robot Report
The Bay Area Robotics Association, or BARA, has officially launched as a member-driven industry platform connecting corporates, roboticists, investors, and startups. The organization said its vision is to help shape robotics and embodied AI in San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and beyond.
BARA was unveiled last week at the Humanoids Summit Silicon Valley, an industry event that convened thought leaders from humanoid robotics, embodied AI, and physical AI.
“BARA was formed in response to industry demand for a member-based, capital-focused organization in the greater San Francisco Bay Area—one that connects innovation with the investment and commercialization partners needed to scale,” said Modar Alaoui, chairman of BARA, and founder and general partner of ALM Ventures.
“By bringing together leaders across humanoid, industrial, service, and mobility robotics, we aim to accelerate the pilots and partnerships that move AI into physical form,” he said. “The Bay Area leads in embodied AI, and our goal is to translate that leadership into real investment and deployment momentum.”
BARA works with U.S., global partners
Reflecting the growing international alignment around real-world deployment and commercialization in robotics, BARA launches with MassRobotics as its primary U.S. collaborator, the AI Robot Association (AIRoA) as its primary Japanese collaborator, and Shanghai SG Robotics (Robot China Network) as its primary Chinese collaborator.
“Partnering with BARA allows us to connect two of the most influential robotics hubs in the world,” said Joyce Sidopoulos, co-founder and chief of operations at MassRobotics. “The East Coast’s depth in research and manufacturing, and the West Coast’s leadership in AI and commercialization create a powerful foundation for startups to grow through shared partnerships and capital pathways.“
Prof. Tetsuya Ogata, chairman of AIRoA, added: “We’re looking forward to working closely with BARA to build new bridges between Japan’s robotics and AI ecosystem and the vibrant Bay Area robotics communities.”
“We believe collaboration with BARA will help drive global progress in robotics and expand the opportunities for industry exchange between China and Silicon Valley,” said Marco Zhao, president of Shanghai SG Robotics.
BARA’s initiative is also strengthened by the broader national standards ecosystem in the U.S., including ongoing work at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) that supports interoperability, measurement science, and deployment readiness across robotics sectors.
Companies welcome to join as members
The new organization is only for companies and not for individual members. According to the BARA site, “Membership is limited to qualified organizations advancing humanoid, industrial, service, and mobility robotics, and the partners who invest in or buy from them.”
BARA is also planning to provide market intelligence to its members, including curated insights on market shifts, standards activity, and emerging robotics clusters to help members stay ahead.
In 2026, BARA will host members-only capital and industry networking sessions for qualified corporates, investors, and startups, with its first session planned for late February. Members will also receive concise ecosystem updates and access to a private directory designed to streamline targeted introductions and collaboration.
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