Industrial Next pitches factory robots that switch tasks in minutes, partners with BMW

San Francisco startup Industrial Next presented AI-driven robotic stations at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, powered by proprietary foundation models linking vision, task context and motion. Production lines can be retooled in minutes instead of weeks, and the company announced a partnership with BMW Group Technology Office to evaluate its AI-powered dexterous manipulation.

• Stations can be retooled in minutes rather than weeks without traditional programming
• Founded in 2021 by ex-Tesla engineers Lukas Pankau and Allen Pan
• Partnering with BMW Group Technology Office to evaluate AI manipulation
• Robots already handle delicate assembly for a popular smartphone