World Labs Secures $1 Billion to Advance Spatial Intelligence and 3D World Models

The Next Frontier of AI

World Labs, the spatial intelligence startup founded by AI pioneer Fei-Fei Li, has raised $1 billion in its latest funding round. This massive capital injection is designed to accelerate the company mission of building Large World Models. These models aim to perceive, generate, and interact with 3D environments in ways that traditional text-based AI cannot. The funding round features an impressive roster of strategic investors including NVIDIA, AMD, and Autodesk. This backing highlights the high demand for spatial AI across hardware and software industries. Other contributors include Fidelity Management & Research Company, Sea, and Emerson Collective, supporting a vision that bridges the gap between digital and physical reality.

Scaling Marble and the World API

This financial milestone follows the successful release of Marble, the company's frontier multimodal world model. Marble enables creators to build spatially cohesive and persistent 3D worlds from simple inputs like text, images, or video. Users can explore and navigate these environments, marking a significant leap forward from static 2D image generation. To expand its industry impact, the company recently launched the World API in January 2026. This tool allows developers to integrate 3D world-building capabilities directly into their own software applications. It is expected to transform fields such as robotics training, gaming, and professional architectural design through high-fidelity simulations.

A Vision for Physics-Aware Intelligence

World Labs is focused on giving AI a fundamental understanding of physics and geometry. By teaching machines how objects relate in space and how light interacts with surfaces, the team is building the brains for future autonomous systems. This spatial intelligence is considered the next critical evolution beyond the limitations of current language-centric models. With a valuation reportedly reaching $5 billion, the company is now scaling its technical team to meet growing global demand. The leadership team includes renowned computer vision experts such as Justin Johnson and Christoph Lassner. Interested developers and researchers can explore current openings on the World Labs job board.