Robohub.org
 

Willow Garage changes direction


by
12 February 2013



share this:
For many years now Willow Garage has invested in open source and open platform robotics. Their goal has been a reflection of the vision of it’s founder (and chief funder) to advance the state of robotic technology in autonomous devices.And advance the state of robotics it certainly did!
  • ROS (Robot Operating System) and ROS-enabled software packages and libraries can be found in most universities and research labs.
  • The 50 PR2 research robots and development platforms around the world and at Willow Garage’s offices in Menlo Park have enabled countless roboticists and research labs to spend their time innovating instead of having to re-invent.
  • The spin-offs abound as well: TurtleBot, OpenCV, Galapagos, ROS and ROS-Industrial, Suitable Technologies’ Beam Remote Presence System, HiDOF consulting, the detection and perception leading to the establishment of Industrial Perception, are all indicators of WG’s policy of spinning out entities with a sustaining business plan.
  • Joint ventures like Redwood Robotics and Industrial Perception.
Today WG announced that they are changing direction and deciding to focus on additional commercial opportunities with an eye to becoming self-supporting. The generous funding from Scott Hassan will stop within three months, and WG employees have been notified. Late last year the writing was on the wall when Scott Hassan announced that he was to be the CEO at WG spin-off Suitable Technologies.
The PR2s around the world will continue to be supported and the recent establishment of non-profit organizations will continue the open source platform and libraries.
What can we expect from Willow Garage in the future?
One can only imagine. Personally, after seeing Industrial Perception’s robot unload the back of a truck, understanding the complexity of what appeared to be a seamless process made simple by IPI, I foresee other products along the line of “see”, “sense”, “process”, and “act” done using ROS, tested on PR2s and rolled out commercially with the new credo of “fast and seamless”.


tags: , , ,


Frank Tobe is the owner and publisher of The Robot Report, and is also a panel member for Robohub's Robotics by Invitation series.
Frank Tobe is the owner and publisher of The Robot Report, and is also a panel member for Robohub's Robotics by Invitation series.





Related posts :



Women in robotics you need to know about 2025

  06 Oct 2025
This global list celebrates women's impact across the robotics ecosystem and globe.

Robot Talk Episode 127 – Robots exploring other planets, with Frances Zhu

  03 Oct 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Frances Zhu from the Colorado School of Mines about intelligent robotic systems for space exploration.

Rethinking how robots move: Light and AI drive precise motion in soft robotic arm

  01 Oct 2025
Researchers at Rice University have developed a soft robotic arm capable of performing complex tasks.

RoboCup Logistics League: an interview with Alexander Ferrein, Till Hofmann and Wataru Uemura

and   25 Sep 2025
Find out more about the RoboCup league focused on production logistics and the planning.

Drones and Droids: a co-operative strategy game

  22 Sep 2025
Scottish Association for Marine Science is running a crowdfunding campaign for educational card game.

Call for AAAI educational AI videos

  22 Sep 2025
Submit your contributions by 30 November 2025.

Self-supervised learning for soccer ball detection and beyond: interview with winners of the RoboCup 2025 best paper award

  19 Sep 2025
Method for improving ball detection can also be applied in other fields, such as precision farming.



 

Robohub is supported by:




Would you like to learn how to tell impactful stories about your robot or AI system?


scicomm
training the next generation of science communicators in robotics & AI


 












©2025.05 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence