Toborlife AI names former Alphabet finance leader Sarah Church as CFO

Toborlife AI said August 4, 2026 that Sarah Church will join as chief financial officer as the robotics company expands across North America and broadens its software platform. The hire adds a finance leader with experience at Taara, Alphabet, Google and Barclays as Toborlife AI pushes deeper into commercial robotics.

Why it matters: - Toborlife AI is moving from hardware distribution into a broader robotics software and operations business. - The CFO role will help steer development spending, working capital and investor relationships as the company scales. - The appointment signals that Toborlife AI is prioritizing finance leadership with deep-tech and commercial-scale experience.

What happened: - Toborlife AI appointed Sarah Church as chief financial officer on August 4, 2026. - Church most recently led finance at Taara, the optical connectivity company spun out of X, Alphabet's Moonshot Factory. - Toborlife AI is based in Mountain View, California, and is the official partner of Unitree Robotics. - The company said Church is joining as it scales its robot distribution business across North America.

The details: - Toborlife AI develops Tobor Harness robot applications and its Tobor Harness teleoperation and control system. - The company is also expanding software built on top of Unitree hardware, including Unitree G1 teleoperation, Unitree remote control and teleoperation for Unitree robots. - Church's background also includes finance roles at Instrumental Inc., Google and Barclays. - Toborlife AI said Church has worked across emerging technologies from early investigation through real-world adoption. - Board member Catherine Lacavera helped shape the search for the new CFO. - Lacavera joined Toborlife AI's board in November 2025 and invested in the company's seed round. - Lacavera is chief legal and compliance officer at Turing and previously spent 16 years as a vice president at Google, including time at X. - Lacavera said the company wanted a finance leader who understood how deep technology companies move from research into real deployment. - Church said she joined because AI software progress will still be constrained by physical hardware and the interfaces around it. - Church said Toborlife AI is making enterprise-grade robotics accessible, adaptable and useful for real operations. - Church said the team is already executing and delighting customers.

Between the lines: - The hire suggests Toborlife AI expects capital needs to rise as it expands into new products, geographies and use cases. - Bringing in an executive with Alphabet and Moonshot Factory ties may also help Toborlife AI strengthen credibility with investors and partners in robotics. - Board involvement in the CFO search indicates the company views finance as a strategic function, not just a back-office role.

What's next: - In her first 90 days, Church will focus on where to concentrate development investment. - Church will also build reporting and controls that give leadership and the board real-time visibility into the business. - Over her first year, Church will work with Founder and CEO David Schulhof on commercial and investor partnerships. - Toborlife AI will also need to manage working capital as it enters new products, geographies and use cases.

The bottom line: - Toborlife AI is adding a finance veteran as it tries to turn robotics distribution and teleoperation software into a larger commercial platform. - For more information, visit the company's announcement.