In Episode 182 of The Robot Report Podcast, editors Mike Oitzman and Eugene Demaitre interview Erin Linebarger, co-founder and CEO of Robotics 88. Linebarger discusses the innovative use of drones in wildfire management, particularly through prescribed fire techniques.
She also describes the genesis of the Boston-based company, the importance of data in fire management, the technology behind its drones, and the future of wildfire mitigation efforts globally.
The Robotics88 drone is a custom-designed quadcopter outfitted with multiple sensors to image the forest floor under the tree canopy. | Credit: Robotics88
Robotics 88 won the Pitchfire competition at the 2024 RoboBusiness event with Linebarger’s presentation about the startup and its application. The judges were impressed not only with the detail of her business plan, but also with the company’s potential with robotics for good.
Show timeline
- 9:51 – News of the week
- 35:12 – Interview with Erin Linebarger co-founder and CEO of Robotics 88
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News of the week
VDMA: Germany’s robotics industry ‘has lost competitiveness’
The German robotics and automation industry is facing a downturn, with the VDMA R+A forecasting a 9% drop in total turnover for 2025, reaching €13.8 billion ($14.4 billion U.S.). This follows a 6% decrease in 2024, with turnover closing at €15.2 billion ($15.8 billion).
Dietmar Ley, chairman of the association, attributed this decline to structural weaknesses within the industry, including over-reliance on the German automotive sector and broader competitiveness issues. These weaknesses were evident in 2024, with a 16% domestic decrease compared to 2023.
Ambi Robotics launches AmbiStack robotic palletizer
AmbiStack, an overhead gantry palletizing system, automates the process of stacking items onto pallets or into containers. At its core is a four-axis gantry robot positioned above an infeed conveyor.
This robot uses a camera, machine vision, and artificial intelligence to identify, acquire, and stack items moving along the conveyor. Ambi Robotics employs reinforcement learning to train the AI model that controls the palletizing robot, according to Jeff Mahler, company co-founder and chief technology officer.
1X Technologies acquires Kind Humanoid to accelerate work toward household robots
1X Technologies announced the acquisition of Kind Humanoid to help accelerate its roadmap in developing and productizing humanoid robots for use in the home.
Palo Alto, Calif.-based Kind Humanoid developed Mona, a bipedal humanoid intended to work in homes and in fields such as healthcare. The three-person company worked with renowned designer Yves Béhar on the bio-inspired form factor. The company also applied AI and large language models (LLMs) to enable Mona to interact with and assist people in everyday situations.
1X Technologies has been developing general-purpose robots for households. The company‘s stated mission is “to create an abundance of labor through safe, intelligent humanoids that work alongside people.” Kind Humanoid falls into the category of an “acqui-hire,” bringing its skills and experience to 1X.
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