The robots of FIRA-USA 2023, CA policy and new agrobotics data standards

Plus humanoids on the hype cycle, drones, teleop, affordable robot arms and awkward robots

The overarching message from FIRA-USA this week was that the agrobots ARE ready, and that farmers are keen. We're seeing more electric agrobots, also some multipurpose agrobots. Farmers in California are also upset that current CA regulations require a safety driver to accompany every autonomous robot in the field, which is not the requirement in some neighboring states - so we have some policy work and education to be done in California. Here’s a full write up on SVRobo.org.

More signals this week that drones are moving up the actual adoption side of the hype cycle, with Skydio’s new enterprise drone and the FAA approving long range deliveries without someone watching from the ground.

And humanoid robots are rapidly heading towards peak hype, wonderfully whipped along by Agility Robotics’ announcement on Monday of the first humanoid RoboFab in Salem Oregon which will be capable of producing 10,000 humanoids per year and employing 600+ people. Agility, Boston Dynamics and Toyota Research Institute were speakers on the TechCrunch Disrupt Industry Stage. I’m hosting a panel on Humanoid Robots with the ‘Big Three’, 1X, Agility Robotics, Apptronik, at the Future in Review conference in California, billed as ‘the best technology conference in the world’ by The Economist.

And this year’s IEEE Humanoids conference will be in Austin Texas on Dec 12-14 with a wide range of humanoid robots (including Apptronik, 1X, Fourier Intelligence, Unitree and Deep Robotics) ready for the first humanoid robot competition since the DARPA Robotics Challenge!

Big thank you to everyone who has become a paid subscriber - it makes you an angel investor in the work I do at Silicon Valley Robotics and as a startup advisor, and accelerator. And maybe we can do more to share your experience and expertize with the robotics startup community. Mentor Office Hours, maybe startup profiles. We’ll keep exploring.

Quick Reads:

Agility Robotics is opening a humanoid robot factory - CNBC

The case for returning US manufacturing from China - Real Clear Policy

Newsom kills driverless truck safety bill, says he trusts the DMV - Los Angeles Times

Toyota Research Institute Unveils Breakthrough in Teaching Robots New Behaviors - Toyota

Diligent Robotics scores $25m to scale socially intelligent service robots - MobiHealthNews

See Chipotle’s new robots that can crank out nearly 200 burrito bowls an hour - Business Insider

Pegasus Tech Ventures Announces Investment into Mujin, Intelligent Robotics Leader from Japan - PR Newswire

Robotics evolving the agricultural industry - KSBW

Skydio Delivers a Breakthrough for Enterprise Drones with the Launch of Skydio X10 - Business Wire

Making aviation history, the FAA enables drone delivery at scale - Zipline

Autonomous flying taxis being developed in Bay Area - ABC7

Uber was supposed to help traffic. It didn’t. Robotaxis will be even worse - SF Chronicle

Congress has stalled on autonomous vehicles and that’s hurting the US - The Hill

What commercial autonomous technology can do for US army modernization - C4ISRNET

Environment: bio-inspired robots to clean up the ocean floor - Hello Future

A fully autonomous ship’s perilous journey at sea - Popular Mechanics

House Subcommittee Meets to Discuss Autonomous Maritime Technology, Submarines - Enotrans

OTTO Motors Launches Heavy Duty Mobile Robot for Tight Manufacturing Spaces - Robotics 24/7

BMW partners with Amazon to get into autonomy faster - CleanTechnica

Where’s the Signal? Warehouse Robots Are Searching for Stronger Internet Connections - Wall St Journal

A New Breed of Intelligent Robots is Poised to Change the Face of Canadian Manufacturing, says CMTS 2023 Keynote - Robotics Tomorrow

Empowering Future Robotics Innovators with InOrbit Education Edition - CIO Influence

Turns Out the LA Robot Delivery Revolution Hasn’t Arrived Yet - EATER LA

Freight Autonomy Startup Clevon Reveals Results Of On-Road Trial With DHL Express Estonia - Forbes

The Fully Autonomous Robot Pharmacy Coming to a Town Near You - EuroNews

A remote solution to safety concerns - Remote controlled robots improve precision and worker safety - Robotics Tomorrow

First fully electric, autonomous tractor in the Midwest unveiled in Missouri - News-Press

Key trends shaping the future of space technology - Aerospace Manufacturing and Design

Fewer workers, higher pay, robots: aerospace suppliers push automation - Seattle Times

Frontier Space Technologies is developing an on-orbit autonomous lab to make space science easy - TechCrunch

NASA wants humanoid robots on future NASA missions - SYFY

These adorable Japanese robots are being used for elder care - Interesting Engineering

‘Hello, humans’: Meet Aura, the Las Vegas Sphere’s humanoid robots designed to help guests - USA Today

Why humans feel bad for awkward robots - Popular Science

Video Friday: Robot Dance - IEEE Spectrum

Robotics Events:

October 4th - the inaugural International Women in Robotics Day with events in Detroit, Bay Area, Boston, Texas, Washington DC, Pittsburgh, Canada, UK and beyond! Host an event and have it listed on the Women in Robotics Org website.

September 28 - The Autonomous Systems Showcase - Deep Tech Showcase

September 28 - InOrbit Connect Live - Where Robots and Users Meet - InOrbit

September 29 - AI x Hardware 24 Hour Hackathon - Studio 45

October 4 - Bots&Beverages in SF at Studio 45 - SVR

October 1-5 - IROS in Detroit incl. Diversity Cocktails on Oct 4th - IEEE RAS

October 18-22 - ROSCon + PX4 Autopilot Developer Summit in New Orleans and virtual - Open Robotics (save $100 by registering for both events)

October 25 - The Food AI Summit - Alameda CA - from The Spoon

Startup Deadlines

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Technology Transitions Laboratory Making Advanced Technology Commercialization Harmonized (Lab MATCH) Prize is now open for submissions! This $620,000 prize offers commercialization-ready intellectual property (IP) to the public from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory—with the goal of finding qualified innovators and entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds to bring technology innovations to market.The prize features a diverse array of IP areas for competitors to choose from, such as grid cybersecurity, selective carbon capture, solar energy, hydrogen technology, and building efficiencies. Follow the prize and learn more at an informational webinar on Oct. 18.

Interesting Robots:

Another super low cost industrial robot arm out of China, Amber Robotics is launching the Lucid One on Kickstarter with delivery promised for November 2023. “Out of box and AI planning 7DOF robot arm, industrial grade, ultralight with open source magnetic tooling for AI control, Vlog, 3D printing, Engraving & Education labs.”

Amber Team, launched B1 project successfully, focus on the specialized in innovative robotics technologies for years. With our in-house native Ethernet-base compliant actuators, we’re dedicated to providing revolutionary solutions in a wide range of robotic applications.

Deeper Reads:

Here’s the latest IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine!

There’s an interesting piece on Open Hardware for Robotics, a measurability capability comparison of various Lidar and Radar sensors for application in robotics, and the announcement of a new journal “IEEE Robotics and Automation Practice” or RAP which will begin soliciting submissions early in 2024. RAP will be a venue where practitioners can find research that is explicitly directed toward deployment in actual robotics and automation settings.

Nominations are now open for the next IEEE Robotics and Automation Award, and we will shortly announce the call for nominations for the IEEE IERA Award, for innovation in robotics, given in conjunction with IFR, the International Federation of Robotics.