A BULL MARKET- IN ROBOTS
A
new report out this week from the Association for Advancing Automation states
workplace robotics orders surged 40% in the U.S. for Q1 of 2021, versus the same time last year. Things may be opening up, but the labor crunch isn’t going away any time soon, and companies are increasingly looking at automation as a solution for staffing crunches.
And while VC investments have slowed down generally, this world is bucking that trend. Robotics, AI and automation are on track to have another banner year, because after decades of discussing the future, it’s finally here. I
One of the more interesting pieces of news this week is
the return of Misty Robotics. I’d met with the company a few times at CES over the years, and was excited to watch them progress. This is a tough business, though. Earlier this year, the company was acquired by the strangely named Swedish firm Furhat Robotics, which promised “unified visions” between the two. This week’s Misty relaunch points the way forward.
Fittingly, like Sphero, the Colorado-based company that birthed it, the new Misty is set to pivot toward the potentially lucrative world of education. Specifically, the company will be focused on STEM learning and various research sectors, including conditions like Alzheimer’s and autism.
Here’s what Furhat CEO Samer Al Moubayed had to say about the move:
There was always great synergy between Furhat and Misty and with this launch you can see how that’s playing out. We’ve updated Misty’s conversational capabilities with a focus on natural language understanding and conversational skills. We also believe that social robots need to reach a much wider sector of society, and be part of the educational system, to prepare the next generation of talent. Misty is designed especially to optimize learning and engagement, and has both an attractive and rich design, and very advanced sensors and hardware, making it unique in the market today.
Refraction AI delivery robot in front of Chick-fil-A in Austin
Refraction AI delivery robot in front of 6th and Congress Chick-fil-A in Austin, Texas.
Image Credits: Refraction AI
Matthew Johnson-Roberson, who’s going to be speaking at TC Sessions: Robotics, as mentioned up top, also spoke with Rebecca this week about his robotic delivery firm, Refraction AI. The company
is teaming up with Chick-fil-A for deliveries in downtown Austin. Refraction is aiming for a delivery time of 10-12 minutes using its REV-1 robots.
“One of the things I didn’t anticipate is the critical nature of the quality of the food delivery experience for big brands,” Johnson-Roberson says. “They live or die by the fact that people think their food shows up and it’s always good and tasty, and it’s repeatable.”
Miso Robotics' burger-grilling kitchen assistant, Flippy.
Image Credits: Miso Robotics
Speaking of chicken-based fast food chains,
Wing Zone is becoming the latest in a long line of restaurants looking at Miso to help automate its kitchens. The company said late last week that it will be incorporating the Flippy 2 robot into the build of all future locations.
Here’s COO David Bloom:
With over 100 new shops in our current development pipeline, our technology roadmap relies heavily on strategic partnerships with companies like Miso, a pioneer in the field of food automation, that has the knowledge, data and resources to design robotics solutions that maximize our efficiency and provide a better overall customer experience. Our industry is in dire need of automation, and we are more than ready to deploy it at scale to continue growing our business.
