Foundation Future Industries is in preliminary discussions with Israeli military officials about supplying as many as 1,000 Phantom MK1 humanoid robots for operations in tunnels beneath Gaza, according to a Financial Times report published on November 11.
Company co-founder and president Mike LeBlanc told the FT that he met senior Israeli military officials in September and toured tunnels with the company’s robot. He said the company was in direct discussions with the chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces. The proposed uses include identifying trip wires and dealing with booby traps in confined spaces where personnel face substantial risks.
The reported figure of up to 1,000 robots is a potential supply volume discussed by the company, not a signed order, procurement award or confirmed deployment. The IDF referred the FT’s request for comment to Israel’s defence ministry, which declined to comment. No delivery schedule, contract value or independently verified field-performance results were disclosed.
San Francisco-based Foundation develops the bipedal Phantom platform for industrial and defence applications. The company has previously described work with US military customers and tests involving robots sent to Ukraine. Its broader ambitions include using humanoid machines for dangerous tasks in environments built for people.
The company has also pursued hardware development with semiconductor partners. In July, Reuters reported an agreement with AMD to develop the next Phantom MK2 generation, reflecting Foundation’s effort to build both the physical robot and its onboard computing capabilities.
The potential Israeli deployment would be a notable shift from demonstrations and limited trials toward a much larger proposed defence application. However, the talks remain at an early stage. There is no confirmation that Israel has agreed to purchase the robots or that Phantom MK1 can perform the proposed tunnel tasks autonomously in operational conditions.
The discussions also raise questions about the intended limits of military robot autonomy, particularly as the company has described combat as a possible future application.
