Ex-Nvidia exec: Robotics not near its ChatGPT moment
Original: An Nvidia insider-turned-VC on why robotics hasn’t hit its ChatGPT moment, yet
Why This Matters
Robotics investment is surging; insider views on timing shape where early capital flows.
Amulya Vishwanath, former NVIDIA robotics product marketing lead and founder of Techable VC, argues robotics is still in a 'Lego era'—rebuilding basic components—not approaching a ChatGPT-scale breakthrough, in a TechCrunch Equity podcast episode published Oct. 16, 2026.
Amulya Vishwanath spent seven years leading product marketing for NVIDIA's robotics platforms before spinning out to launch Techable VC, an early-stage firm focused on physical AI across robotics, materials science, and life sciences. In a TechCrunch Equity interview, she pushed back on the increasingly popular thesis that robotics is on the verge of its 'ChatGPT moment.' Her argument: the field is still in a 'Lego era,' with foundational components—actuators, robotic hands, software stacks, safety standards—still being rebuilt from scratch. The comparison to ChatGPT's November 2022 launch is a live debate in the sector. General Intuition CEO Pim de Witte had told Equity earlier that a single general foundation model would make much of today's specialized robotics work redundant and trigger that inflection point. Vishwanath disagrees with that timeline. She also spoke about her experience as one of the first women executives to leave Nvidia and start her own venture firm, and where Techable VC is writing its first checks.