DIC Makes Strategic Investment in U.S.-Based Mantis Robotics,
A Pioneer in Fenceless High-Speed Industrial Robots —First investment through DIC’s European investment base;DIC to explore collaboration opportunities in the physical AI domain—

Against a backdrop of labor shortages and the need to increase productivity, the deployment of industrial robots is expanding across the manufacturing and logistics industries. However, industrial robots generally require the installation of fences or segregated work areas to ensure safety, as a result of which the creation of flexible and collaborative environments that people and robots can share remains a key challenge.

Mantis Robotics develops fenceless, high-speed industrial robotic platforms that leverage its proprietary safety control and 3D spatial sensing technologies to create environments that facilitate safe human-robot collaboration. These technologies eliminate the need for fences, delivering both high productivity and safety, and continue to attract attention from manufacturers and logistics operators amid growing demand for greater automation. The commercialization of its MR-1 flagship robot, which recently obtained safety certification, and other products for use in diverse sectors, including logistics, electronics equipment and automotive manufacturing, continue to drive the expansion of Mantis Robotics’ operations.

DIC has positioned physical AI as a key growth area. Earlier this year, the Company established a new US$62 million startup investment fund and entered into a strategic partnership with Emerald Technology Ventures, a Switzerland-based global venture capital firm, to advance investments in startups around the world. DIC D2S Ventures was created through this partnership.

DIC’s investment in Mantis Robotics will bring together its accumulated technologies in high-performance materials, sensing and processing and the U.S. company’s safety and control technologies. The two companies will explore collaboration in such areas as tactile and sensing technologies for robots, robotic fingers and lightweight, advanced components.

Executive comments
Shinsuke Kotera, President, DIC D2S Ventures AG
Mantis Robotics has developed unique technologies that enable safe human-robot collaboration while also ensuring outstanding productivity. We are particularly encouraged by the commercial momentum following the safety certification of MR-1 and believe the company has significant potential as industrial automation continues to expand. We look forward to supporting Mantis Robotics’ growth and exploring opportunities to create new value by combining its capabilities with our materials and sensing technologies.

Gerry Vannuffelen, Co-Founder and CEO, Mantis Robotics, Inc.
We are delighted to welcome DIC as a strategic partner at this pivotal inflection point in our commercial growth. Combining DIC’s leadership in high-performance materials, sensing technologies and global manufacturing capabilities with our fenceless robotic platform creates a powerful foundation for the future of industrial automation. Together, we look forward to accelerating the adoption of safe, full-throughput robotic solutions that seamlessly coexist with humans.

Going forward, DIC will continue to accelerate the creation of new business opportunities by pursuing strategic investments in and collaboration with promising startups in the physical AI domain.

– Ends –

Related press releases
DIC Steps Up Collaboration with the European Physical AI Ecosystem to Create New Businesses in this Promising Area (August 2026)
　https://www.dic-global.com/en/news/2026/ir/20260807093509.html

DIC to Hold International Physical AI Innovation Summit in Switzerland (June 2026)
　https://www.dic-global.com/en/news/2026/event/20260616070903.html

DIC Establishes Investment Management Subsidiary DIC D2S Ventures in European Deep Tech Hub (May 2026)
　https://www.dic-global.com/en/news/2026/ir/20260512170513.html

DIC Enters into a Partnership with Switzerland-Based Emerald to Accelerate Business Creation in the Physical AI Domain (February 2026)
　https://www.dic-global.com/en/news/2026/ir/20260213145018.html

About Mantis Robotics, Inc.
Representative: Gerry Vannuffelen, Co-Founder and CEO
Headquarters: Pleasanton, California, United States
Established: 2020
Business: Development and manufacturing of fenceless industrial robots and full-stack safety technologies
Website: https://mantis-robotics.com/

About DIC Corporation
DIC Corporation is one of the world’s leading fine chemicals companies and the core of the DIC Group, a multinational organization comprising over 160 companies, including Sun Chemical Corporation, in more than 60 countries and territories. The DIC Group is recognized as a global leader in the markets for a variety of products essential to modern lifestyles, notably packaging materials, display materials such as those used in television and computer displays, and high-performance materials for smartphones and other digital devices, as well as for automobiles. Through such products, the Group endeavors to deliver safety and peace of mind, and color and comfort, to people everywhere. The DIC Group also seeks to contribute to a sustainable society by developing innovative products that respond to social change and which help address social imperatives. With annual consolidated net sales exceeding ¥1 trillion and approximately 21,000 employees worldwide, the Group pledges to continue working in close cooperation with its customers wherever they are.
For more information, please visit the DIC global website:https://www.dic-global.com/

Tokyo, Japan—DIC Corporation announced today that it has made a strategic investment in Mantis Robotics, Inc., a U.S.-based startup that develops fenceless, high-speed industrial robots that work safely alongside people, to accelerate business creation in the physical AI domain—an area DIC has designated as a growth business under Phase 2 of its DIC Vision 2020. This is the first investment (amount undisclosed) by DIC D2S Ventures AG, which was established in March 2026 in Zurich as the Company’s European investment base.