Former OpenAI Research Chief Bob McGrew’s Startup Arda Raises $230M at $1.5B Valuation

Arda, a manufacturing AI startup co-founded by former OpenAI chief research officer Bob McGrew, raised $230M at a $1.5B valuation in a funding round disclosed on October 20, 2026. The financing was led by investors including Altimeter Capital, Accel, and Khosla Ventures, more than doubling the $700M valuation where Arda sought $70M in March 2026. Arda develops software for physical factory floors that analyzes production video and helps manufacturing lines reconfigure faster when product designs change. The platform also coordinates workflows between human workers and factory robots, aiming to make US factories more adaptable and less reliant on foreign supply chains. Defense technology company Anduril is already deploying Arda's models in real-world operations, while McGrew brings leadership experience from his tenure at OpenAI from 2017 to 2024.