Few categories are as ripe for automation-fueled disruption as construction. The industry is valued at around $ 2 trillion a year, in the U.S. alone. Much of that work is strenuous, repetitive and sometimes dangerous — precisely the sorts of problems industrial robotics are built to solve. The other thing construction brings is a wide […]
Hello is building a platform toward more home robots
The road to the home robot is one fraught with peril. The number of success stories it’s delivered can be counted on a single hand. The reasons for this massive disconnect are nuanced and complex — much like the insides of our homes. Twenty-years after the first Roomba arrived, the robot vacuum has begun to […]
Starship Technologies raises $90M as its sidewalk robots pass 6M deliveries
Sidewalk delivery robot services appear to be stalling left and right, but a pioneer in the concept says it is profitable and has now raised a round of funding to scale up to meet market demand. Starship Technologies, a startup out of Estonia that was an early mover in the delivery robotics space, has picked […]
OpenAI-backed 1X raises another $100M for the race to humanoid robots
The race to perfect the humanoid form factor will be one of 2024’s defining tech stories. Last year saw the category heat up, as companies like Tesla, Apptronik and Figure debuted their systems, while Agility inched closer to the finish lining, announcing a warehouse pilot with Amazon. 1X is a name (well, a number and […]
Agility is using large language models to communicate with its humanoid robots
I’ve spent much of the past year discussing generative AI and large language models with robotics experts. It’s become increasingly clear that these sorts of technologies are primed to revolutionize the way robots communicate, learn, look and are programmed. Accordingly, a number of top universities, research labs and companies are exploring the best methods for […]