In Episode 167 of The Robot Report Podcast, co-hosts Mike Oitzman and Eugene Demaitre discuss the latest robotics news from the past week.
In addition, Dr. Henrik Christensen, main editor of the U.S. robotics roadmap, discusses the intersection of technology and federal policy, emphasizing the need for more attention and funding for the sector. He discusses the challenges of reshoring manufacturing, the implications of the current presidential campaigns on robotics, and the importance of tariffs and immigration reforms.
Christensen also explains the effects of recent legislation such as the Build Back Better Act and the CHIPS Act on the robotics industry, as well as the future of semiconductor manufacturing and international partnerships.
Show timeline
- 6:25 – News of the week
- 22:45 – Interview with Henrik Christensen, Qualcomm Chancellor’s Chair of Robot Systems and a distinguished professor of computer science at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at UC San Diego
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News of the week
Robot Utility Models: the coolest thing you never heard about (yet)
Robot Utility Models (RUM), created by Lerrel Pinto and his team at NYU, are an open-source research project aiming to generalize robot training, reducing the need for extensive data and enabling systems to perform tasks in unseen environments.
Service robot sales climb by 30% worldwide, reports the IFR
According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), sales of professional service robots surged by 30% globally in 2023. The Asia-Pacific region dominated the market, accounting for nearly 80% of sales. Transportation and logistics applications led the way, with sales increasing by 35%. Hospitality robots and agricultural automation also saw significant growth.
Corvus Robotics raises $18M for updated drone inventory system
Corvus Robotics Inc. closed an $18 million Series A round and seed funding led by S2G Ventures and Spero Ventures. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company has been engineering and validating its inventory drone system since it was founded in 2017. Until now, Corvus has been relatively quiet with marketing and sales.
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