Kalanick’s $1.7 billion comeback ties Uber back to the founder it once forced out

By Any July 23, 2026

Atoms, a robotics company founded by Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick, has raised $1.7 billion in a funding round. Investors included Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Uber itself. The startup, a rebranding of Kalanick's CloudKitchens project, aims to build a "wheelbase for robots."

Kalanick’s $1.7 billion comeback ties Uber back to the founder it once forced out
Travis Kalanick’s latest venture, Atoms, took a major step forward on July 22 when reports emerged that the robotics startup had raised $1.7 billion, with Andreessen Horowitz leading the round and Uber also participating. The fundraising immediately stood out not only for its size, but because it reconnects Kalanick with Uber, the company he co-founded and later left under pressure.

According to TechCrunch, Atoms is the new name for the broader project Kalanick has been building since leaving Uber, evolving from CloudKitchens into a company focused on robotics and industrial AI. Kalanick framed the raise as part of a longer arc, writing that the round was “unfinished business” and linked it to work that began at Uber and continued through CloudKitchens.

That message reflects one perspective on the deal: a founder returning with a bigger ambition to “digitize the physical world” and build what he has called a “wheelbase for robots.” Supporters echoed that view. TechCrunch reported that Andreessen Horowitz co-founder Ben Horowitz said, “Travis is Back,” praising Kalanick as the kind of entrepreneur able to reshape “old-school, heavy parts of our economy.”

But the same development also carries a more complicated history. TechCrunch noted that Uber’s investment reunites Kalanick with the company that pushed him out as chief executive in 2017 amid complaints about sexual harassment, discrimination and a toxic workplace. In that sense, the new funding round is both a vote of confidence in Atoms’ future and a reminder of the unresolved legacy surrounding its founder.

##### 1. [Travis Kalanick's robotics company raises $1.7B, led by a16z](https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/22/travis-kalanicks-robotics-company-raises-1-7b-led-by-a16z/) — TechCrunch reported that Atoms raised $1.7 billion, led by Andreessen Horowitz, with Uber also investing; the report also described Kalanick’s "unfinished business" framing and Atoms’ robotics ambitions.

2. Uber founder Travis Kalanick raises $1.7bn for new start-up — Financial Times headline describing Kalanick’s $1.7 billion fundraising for his new startup.

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