Brett Adcock launches new AI lab Harc with $100M of personal capital while remaining Figure CEO
Dec 18, 2025
Key Points
- Brett Adcock, CEO of robotics startup Figure AI, launches a new AI lab called Harc funded with $100 million of his personal capital while retaining his Figure role.
- Harc's first GPU cluster went online Monday and focuses on building AI systems that think proactively and recursively with human-centric values.
- Adcock bets on a parallel research direction even as Figure, valued at nearly $2 billion, gains momentum with backing from NVIDIA and Microsoft.
Summary
Brett Adcock, CEO of robotics startup Figure AI, is launching a new AI lab called Harc with $100 million of his personal capital. He will remain Figure's CEO while taking on the new role.
Harc's first GPU cluster went online Monday. According to a memo Adcock sent to Figure employees and investors, the lab will focus on building human-centric AI that can think proactively, recursively, and care deeply about people. The size of the initial cluster was not disclosed.
This move mirrors a broader trend among AI startup founders and executives. Richard Socher recently launched a separate lab while remaining at his original company. Well-known researchers and executives have raised billions for new labs in recent months, betting on novel approaches to model development.
Figure has raised nearly $2 billion to date from investors including Parkway, NVIDIA, and Microsoft. The company's valuation has grown substantially, making Adcock's decision to fund a parallel venture significant. He is effectively betting on a separate research direction while his primary company gains momentum.