Found in
Woven Planet Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corp., said yesterday that it has agreed to acquire Level 5, the self-driving division of ride-hailing company Lyft Inc. This marks the first major deal for the newly established Woven Planet and continuing consolidation in the autonomous vehicle space. Woven Planet Group launched in January 2021 as an expansion of the…
Found in
Plus One Robotics, which provides vision software for logistics robots, today said it has raised $33 million in Series B funding. The San Antonio-based company said the funding will support its ongoing expansion in the U.S. and Europe, as well as continued product development. “We’re fortunate to work with customers at the leading edge of warehouse automation who share our…
Found in
Agriculture has become increasingly mechanized over the past few centuries. As people migrate to cities and suburbs for better-paying, less strenuous and seasonal work, automation is essential to making up for the shortfall in labor. Robots, drones, and artificial intelligence are starting to help farmers plant seeds; apply water, fertilizer, and pesticides; and harvest with more efficiency and less waste…
Found in
Among the challenges facing people whose legs have been amputated above the knee is a lack of sensory feedback from most commercially available prostheses. Researchers at ETH Zurich recently found that artificial neural feedback from a sensorized bionic leg can help users as well as designers of robotic assistive technologies. The scientists conducted their study at the Laboratory for Neuroengineering,…
Found in
The enabling technologies for exoskeletons and other wearable robotics have been steadily improving. However, bringing such systems to market for industrial or therapeutic use poses challenges in scaling up for production. Sarcos Corp. this month marked a significant milestone as it announced a merger with Rotor Acquisition Corp., which will provide $496 million in capital. Robotics 24/7 spoke with Ben…
Found in
Meituan Inc. yesterday said that it has raised $10 billion, which it plans to invest in research and development of autonomous vehicles, drone delivery services, and other technology innovation. The Beijing-based company describes itself as a “one-stop platform for food, transportation, travel, shopping, and entertainment.” Meituan Select's business model “involves neighbors jointly purchasing groceries in bulk online at discounted prices…
Found in
At its GPU Technology Conference, or GTC 2021, NVIDIA Corp. last week touted new processors, software, and partnerships. The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company also announced Omniverse Enterprise, a realistic simulated environment that can be used for entertainment and developing robots, artificial intelligence, and autonomous vehicles. “Omniverse was made to create shared virtual 3D worlds,” stated Jensen Huang, founder and CEO…
Found in
The Kroger Co. last week said it is launching its Customer Fulfillment Center in Monroe, Ohio, the first of its kind in the U.S. to combine “vertical integration, machine learning, and robotics with affordable, friendly, and fast delivery service for fresh food.” The company will be using technology from Ocado Group PLC under a partnership that began in 2018. Cincinnati-based…
Found in
After years of development and a journey of millions of miles, the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter flew for the first time today, marking the first controlled, powered flight on another planet. Data was received via the Perseverance Mars rover at 6:46 a.m. EDT (3:46 a.m. PDT). “The Wright Brothers showed that powered flight in Earth's atmosphere was possible, using an experimental…
Found in
During the ProMat DX virtual materials handling conference last week, Waypoint Robotics Inc. announced that it has teamed up with Productive Robotics Inc. to offer a mobile manipulator that is easy to use and cost-effective for small and midsize enterprises. The system includes Waypoint's Vector mobile robot with Productive Robotics' OB7 collaborative robot arm. The companies said the new autononomous…
Found in
Today's telepresence technologies and teleoperation of remote systems could be stepping stones on the way to robotic avatars that could help with disaster relief, healthcare, space exploration, and more. That's the goal of the $10 million ANA Avatar XPRIZE competition, which announced semifinalist teams earlier this month. Sponsored by All Nippon Airways (ANA), Japan's largest airline, the Avatar XPRIZE is…
Found in
Although suppliers showed off numerous robotics offerings during ProMat DX this week, how can warehouse and factory operators be sure to get a return on their investments? Efficiency, safety, and productivity can be measured, and systems are emerging that can add the benefits of automation without requiring an investment in all-new vehicles, claimed SIERA.AI. The safety hazards around current forklifts…
Found in
As robotics suppliers work to expand automation to new tasks and markets, their systems need to be easier to train and more flexible. Micropsi Industries has developed MIRAI, a control system that it said enables collaborative robots to perceive and react rather than follow preset programs. Micropsi was founded in 2014 and has offices in Brooklyn, N.Y., and Berlin, Germany.…
Found in
The development of autonomous vehicles for transporting people or goods takes a lot of money, and who better to support driverless delivery than one of the largest retailers in the U.S.? Cruise LLC today said that several institutional investors and Walmart Inc. have joined its previously announced investment round, bringing the total capital raised to $2.75 billion at a valuation…
Found in
Robotics, artificial intelligence, and, increasingly, integration with other enterprise systems are helping warehouse operators to meet increased demand, according to inVia Robotics Inc. The Los Angeles-based company provides mobile robots and software driven by artificial intelligence to improve fulfillment center efficiency. The COVID-19 pandemic may have accelerated e-commerce demand, but scarce labor has persisted as a driver of automation, said…
Ultrasonic sensing enhances robotics perception
World's first omni-modal evaluation including tactile sensing for…
Cybernetix Ventures’ event kicks off Robotics Tech Week 2026 slate of events
Preview the manufacturing and warehouse components that will be on the…
