In Episode 166 of The Robot Report Podcast, co-hosts Mike Oitzman and Steve Crowe discuss the latest robotics news from the past week.
On the show this week, we feature a recent conversation with Berndt Børnich, CEO and founder of 1X (formerly Halodi) Robotics. 1X recently launched NEO Beta, its second generation of a humanoid robot, and the company’s first legged platform. 1X has always had the mission to develop an abundance of labor and scale the population of humanoid robots.
In this conversation, Bernt discusses the launch of 1X’s humanoid robot, NEO, and the mission to address labor shortages through robotics. He emphasizes the importance of designing robots for home environments to gather diverse data for AI training, ensuring safety and compliance, and navigating regulatory challenges. The discussion also touches on the public perception of robots and the future of humanoid robotics in society.
The company deployed its first generation of EVE robots in enterprise and is now focused on deploying NEO into the home. “Our priority is safety,” said Bernt Børnich, CEO of 1X. “Safety is the cornerstone that allows us to confidently introduce NEO Beta into homes, where it will gather essential feedback and demonstrate its capabilities in real-world settings.”
If you want to sponsor a future episode of The Robot Report Podcast, contact Courtney Nagle at [email protected].
Show timeline
- 7:07 – News of the week
- 36:28 – Interview with Berndt Børnich, CEO and founder of 1X
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News of the week
3Laws secures $4.1M in seed funding to improve robot safety
- We had 3Laws chief scientist and co-founder Aaron Ames on the podcast back in February. Earlier this week, I met with Professor Ames and his team to discuss their recent funding round and future plans. The company, founded by Professor Ames and his lab members, has developed groundbreaking safety algorithms for humanoid robots. These algorithms, based on the principles of 3 Laws, could become essential for ensuring the safe operation of future robotic systems. The company intends to use the new funding to expand its engineering team and commercialize its solutions, while also hiring support staff to serve its customers.
Serve Robotics partners with Wing for robot-to-drone delivery
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Serve Robotics and Wing Aviation are teaming up to revolutionize last-mile deliveries. A Serve robot will collect orders and hand them off to a Wing drone for aerial delivery, expanding the reach of delivery services to customers up to six miles away. The Federal Aviation Administration’s recent approval of beyond-visual-line-of-sight flights for Wing and Zipline in Dallas marks a significant step forward in this growing industry. The convergence of ground and aerial robots is ushering in a new era of last-mile delivery solutions.
OpenAI closed a $6.6 billion funding haul with investment from Microsoft and Nvidia
- OpenAI just announced a $6.6 billion funding round. This funding round could value the company at $157 billion and cement its position as one of the most valuable private companies in the world. OpenAI has become a centerpiece for so many AI-based solutions, including many robotics companies.
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