Kinetic Blocks Launches Humanoid Robot Training Data Marketplace

(MENAFN- Robotics & Automation News) Kinetic Blocks, an Oslo-based startup, has launched a beta version of what it describes as a two-sided marketplace for buying and selling training data for humanoid robots.

The marketplace opened on September 1 following several months of development with an initial group of data suppliers and early users.

Access is currently restricted, with Kinetic Blocks individually reviewing applications from potential buyers and sellers. The company says it is approving suppliers that own or control data they are entitled to license and buyers that are actively training humanoid models.

Kinetic Blocks was established on the premise that access to suitable training data is becoming a significant constraint on humanoid robot development.

The company says exchanges between organizations possessing robotics data and developers seeking it have traditionally relied on bilateral negotiations that can take months and leave questions over licensing rights.

Kinetic Blocks says its objective is to turn the process into“ordinary commerce”, allowing suppliers to list datasets with documented provenance and commercial licensing terms while buyers evaluate, purchase and download the data through the platform.

Approved suppliers can offer egocentric human video, robot teleoperation recordings and robot execution data. Datasets can be submitted using the LeRobot v3.0 format or suppliers' own formats.

Sellers determine their own prices, while Kinetic Blocks takes a platform margin. Buyers receive a commercial license as part of the transaction, establishing usage rights before the purchased data is incorporated into model training.

Datasets are also evaluated through the company's KBQS quality system, which is intended to provide a consistent grading mechanism across listings.

Kinetic Blocks says:“The catalogue is small and will stay small for a while, several parts of the workflow are still manual behind the scenes, and the KBQS grading criteria will be revised as we see more data.”

The company adds that it intends to use the beta period to understand how buyers value datasets, how suppliers price them and where difficulties emerge during transactions.

Kinetic Blocks was founded by CEO Lars-Fredrik Forberg together with Erik Ålgård and Christian Rokseth. Ålgård and Rokseth were early investors in Norwegian humanoid robotics company 1X Technologies, while Ålgård spent 10 years on the company's board. Rokseth is also publisher of Humanoid.

Marcus Hølland Eikeland, who developed the platform's first minimum viable product, remains an adviser, while Leo Terry leads data quality and the KBQS pipeline from Boston.

The company plans to expand its engineering and commercial teams as it develops supply and demand across the US, Europe and Asia.

Kinetic Blocks also says it plans to open a seed funding round in the fourth quarter of 2026 and has already begun discussions with prospective investors.

Main image: CEO of Kinetic Blocks Lars-Fredrik Forberg

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