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November fundings, acquisitions, IPOs and failures
Frank Tobe
01 Dec 2016
Seventeen robotics-related companies got funded for a combined total of over $225 million. Four more got acquired. Three went public to raise funds. And one failed....
Robohub is a top 10 brand in robotics
Kassie Perlongo
01 Dec 2016
Yesterday, Onalytica released a report "Robotics: Top 100 Influencers and their Brands" that analysed interactions between robotics influencers and brands on Twitter over a period of 90 ...
Where is robotic vision on the Hype Cycle?
Sue Keay
30 Nov 2016
I was reading Steve Blank's blog on machine learning start-ups yesterday, where he described how technical infrastructure innovations follow a Hype Cycle with characteristics defined by the Gartner G...
Who did Robohub reader’s vote for in Robot Launch 2016?
Andra Keay
24 Nov 2016
We're delighted to announce that UniExo is the winner of the "Robohub Reader's Pick" in the Robot Launch 2016 global startup competition. Are Robohub readers on the same wavelength as our panel of VC...
US auto industry installed 135,000 robots and added 230,000 jobs
Frank Tobe
24 Nov 2016
In the last six years, (2010–2015), according to the IFR (International Federation of Robotics), US industry has installed around 135,000 new industrial robots. The principal driver is automation ...
Let’s hope Trump does what he says regarding robots and robotics
Frank Tobe
23 Nov 2016
In President-elect Trump's interview with the NY Times yesterday, when discussing jobs, closed factories and factories that may leave the country, he was asked: "Are you worried that those companies w...
Two robotic stock IPOs coming to market
Frank Tobe
22 Nov 2016
For the last few years, there have been very few stock IPOs (Initial Public Offerings). Promising companies have been acquired instead, eg: Kiva Systems and Universal Robots. But two robotics-relate...
Why are some social robots selling well, whilst others are stalled or failing?
Frank Tobe
18 Nov 2016
Amazon's Echo sales have exceeded 4 million and they are ramping up to sell 10 million in 2017; Google's Home has received positive reviews and have just begun selling in large numbers; but SoftBank's...
Robot Launch 2016 – Robohub Readers’ Pick round three
Andra Keay
17 Nov 2016
For the next three weeks, Robohub readers can vote for their “Readers’ Pick” startup from the Robot Launch competition. Each week, we’ll be publishing 10 videos. Our ultimate Robohub Readers...
Lofty goals crash land while B2B drones prosper
Frank Tobe
15 Nov 2016
Key executives leaving (or were requested to leave) Goggle's drone delivery Project Wing; GoPro recalls all of its newly launched Karma drones and doesn't offer a replacement; DJI slashes prices. What...
Care-O-bot 4 celebrates its premiere as a shopping assistant
Fraunhofer IPA
14 Nov 2016
In January 2015, Fraunhofer IPA presented a prototype of the “Care-O-bot 4” service robot. The charming helper is now proving its worth in the real world. “Paul” the robot has been greeting cu...
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Ori Systems: Robotic Furniture, with Hasier Larrea
Audrow Nash
12 Nov 2016
In this episode, Audrow Nash interviews Hasier Larrea, Founder and CEO of Ori Systems and MSc candidate at the MIT Media Lab, about robotics used to transform personal spaces. Larrea discusses how the...
New U.S. Robotics Roadmap calls for regulation, research and education
UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering
11 Nov 2016
A new U.S. Robotics Roadmap released Oct. 31 calls for better policy frameworks to safely integrate new technologies, such as self-driving cars and commercial drones, into everyday life. The document...
Robot Launch 2016 – Robohub Readers’ Pick round two
Andra Keay
10 Nov 2016
For the next three weeks, Robohub readers can vote for their “Readers’ Pick” startup from the Robot Launch competition. Each week, we’ll be publishing 10 videos. Our ultimate Robohub Readers...
Zoox raises $50 million for their stealthy Silicon Valley venture
Frank Tobe
08 Nov 2016
Zoox, the secretive Silicon Valley startup working to build its own self-driving cars, has quietly raised $50 million (in October) in a Series A round led by Composite Capital Management, a Hong Kong...
Clearpath Robotics launches “Warthog UGV”, the amphibious robot
Clearpath Robotics
03 Nov 2016
Clearpath Robotics, a leading provider of mobile robotic platforms for research and development, has partnered with ARGO XTR to release Warthog – a large, amphibious, all-terrain mobile robot desig...
Robot Launch 2016 – Robohub Readers’ Pick round one
Andra Keay
02 Nov 2016
For the next three weeks, Robohub readers can vote for their “Readers’ Pick” startup from the Robot Launch competition. Each week, we’ll be publishing 10 videos. Our ultimate Robohub Readers...
October fundings, acquisitions, IPOs and failures
Frank Tobe
02 Nov 2016
October fundings for robotics-related startups totaled $291.75 million bringing the year-to-date funding figure very close to $1.5 billion. For acquisitions, three of the six companies acquired report...
The changing landscape of drone funding
Frank Tobe
26 Oct 2016
CB Insights Drone Quarterly Financing Trends to VC-Backed Companies shows a downward trend. The Robot Report's monthly funding reports show something different: a change in the nature of drone applic...
RoboBusiness 2016: Our takeaways
Samuel Bouchard and Robotiq Inc.
20 Oct 2016
We’re back from our yearly sync with the robotics industry happening at RoboBusiness. As usual, there were great talks and great people to meet. To be honest, I felt less frenzy this year than in th...
Who are the most active robotics investors?
Andra Keay and Silicon Valley Robotics
19 Oct 2016
You may be surprised, but I’m not. These are the people I see regularly both in Silicon Valley and overseas interacting with the robotics community. That makes them the smart money (most of the time...
Automation should complement professional expertise, not replace it
Frank Pasquale
19 Oct 2016
Will your next doctor be an app? A cost-cutting NHS wants more patients to act as “self-carers,” with some technologized assistance. A series of flowcharts and phone trees might tell parents whose...
IFR’s two reports for 2015 show double-digit growth for remainder of decade
Frank Tobe
17 Oct 2016
Each year the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) surveys and tabulates data from its worldwide network of robotics associations. The two 2016 annual World Robotics Industrial Robots and World...
Zymergen gets $130 million from SoftBank and other VCs
Frank Tobe
12 Oct 2016
SoftBank, the Japanese telecom conglomerate, led a group that included Iconiq Capital, Prelude Ventures, Tao Capital Partners, and seven others in a $130 million funding round for Zymergen to help ...
Samsung acquires Viv in a quest to link all its appliances
Frank Tobe
10 Oct 2016
Dag Kittlaus, founder and CEO of Siri, Inc., produced and uploaded an app into the Apple App store February 2010. The app quickly rose to 1st in the 'Lifestyle Section.' In March, Steve Jobs called Ki...
September fundings, acquisitions, IPOs and failures
Frank Tobe
05 Oct 2016
September continued the big-money spree for funding robotic startups. 10 good-sized deals and three little ones. Almost $220 million (bringing the year-to-date total well over $1 billion)! Plus, ano...
A look at a Danish robotics cluster
Frank Tobe
04 Oct 2016
There are many robotics clusters around the world successfully providing for the needs of their respective communities and a few not really achieving their desired goals. Odense and the Danish cluster...
$60 million committed to Smart Cities Initiative
the National Science Foundation (NSF)
29 Sep 2016
From autonomous vehicles to flash flood alert systems, technology transforms how people lead their daily lives and how local cities and communities function.
Last September, the Administration laun...
46 research reports analyze the robotics industry and autonomous vehicles
Frank Tobe
29 Sep 2016
As autonomous cars begin to hit world markets in pilot tests and other ways, and before the International Federation of Robotics clarifies whether those vehicles are robots or not, two research firms ...
Integrators are dead, long live the integrator
Frank Tobe
15 Sep 2016
For many years integrators have engineered, built and installed automation machinery for their manufacturer clients. As manufacturing has begun to move from mass production to mass customization,...
Tune in: Economist holding Facebook Live Q&A about AI and the future of work
Robohub Editors
13 Sep 2016
How will artificial intelligence change the world of work? The Economist is holding a Facebook Live Q&A with their Deputy Editor on Tuesday, September 13, 4pm London time. You can watch, listen, ...
August fundings and acquisitions
Frank Tobe
05 Sep 2016
August was another big month for funding robotic startups. 18 deals. Almost $430 million (bringing the year-to-date total well over $1 billion)! Plus, another $1 billion paid in August for four acqui...
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ExoAtlet: Exoskeleton for Rehabilitation, with Ekaterina Bereziy
Audrow Nash
02 Sep 2016
In this episode, Audrow Nash interviews Ekaterina Bereziy, Founder and CEO of ExoAtlet, about exoskeletons for the disabled and for rehabilitation.
Transcript below....
Two LiDAR makers each get big funding
Frank Tobe
26 Aug 2016
In anticipation of the need for LiDAR devices in cars with assisted steering and other self-driving technologies, both Velodyne and Quanergy received funding. Quanergy raised $90 million and Velodyne...
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215
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Human 2.0: Exoskeletons and Orthoses, with Hugh Herr
Audrow Nash
20 Aug 2016
In this episode, Audrow Nash interviews Hugh Herr, Director of the Biomechatronics Group at MIT. Herr talks about the accident that led to the amputation of both of his legs below the knee and how th...
As Ford sets a date, Jibo retracts theirs
Frank Tobe
19 Aug 2016
Bringing a complex new product to market is an intensive process fraught with problems. Getting hardware ready for manufacturing is often the easy part; it's the software and regulatory compliance tha...
