The Robot Report Podcast

In this episode, we review John Deere AgTech presented at the 2023 John Deere Technology Summit, and interview Jorge Heraud, VP of Autonomy at John Deere. Later in the episode we discuss the sensor and perception stack being developed to operate the Zoox autonomous vehicle with two of Zoox's technology leaders: RJ He and Ryan McMichael. If you love autonomous vehicles, this episode looks at the current state of AV technology in two of the key use cases.

This week, Steve and Mike recap all of the robotics-related technology on display at the 2023 ProMat tradeshow. Steve went to the show and shares his discoveries and some of the conversations with industry leaders. Mike reviews news from the NVIDIA GTC keynote and robotics-related news from NVIDIA.

In the news today, we talk about the breaking story about the impact of Silicon Valley Bank being closed and put into receivership by the FDIC and the impact that this is likely to have on technology startups and the VCs that support their growth. This rapidly evolving situation is likely to have repercussions for the tech industry the remainder of the year. Unrelated to the SVB story, we also interview Rylan Hamilton, co-founder and CEO of 6 River Systems about his start in robotics with Kiva Systems and how he started and built 6 River Systems into a leading AMR manufacturer that's now a major part of the Shopify family.

Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman discuss the uncloaking of Figure.AI, a new humanoid robot. They also discuss the latest with ChatGPT and what the latest release brings for roboticists. Our guest on the show today is Dejan Pangercic, co-founder and CTO of APEX.ai, an autonomous vehicle software company that has built a hardned OS around ROS 2. Dejan takes us through the features of the software and why it is an important solution for developers of autonomous vehicles today.

This week, co-hosts Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman talk to industry veteran Ted Larson, the co-founder and CEO of OLogic. Ted, and OLogic have helped many robotic entrepreneurs through the design & development process of complex systems. Ted shares some of his favorite stories and valuable tips related to the complexities of developing successful robotic solutions.

This week cohosts Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman explore the various robotic and automation solutions that were on display at the 2023 World Ag Expo in Tulare, CA. The episode features interviews with representatives from Monarch Tractor, Agtonomy, Carbon Robotics and Farmwise. Mike also discusses new solutions from Tevel Aerobotics, Farm-NG, Amos Power, Nexus Robotics, Bluewhite, Beewise, and Guardian Agriculture.

Cohosts Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman review the news of the week, including a wayward Marty robot "out for a fresh air break". Joining us on the show this week is Aaron Prather, who is one of the robotics industries best known influencers. Aaron is a frequent speaker and discusses his new role at ASTM and reflects on his prior experience evaluating new robotics and automation for logistics and warehouse workflows in his previous role at FedEx. If you work for a young robotics startup, this is a great conversation to learn how to prepare for and deliver on the needs of your early clients.

This week, co-hosts Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman review the latest Boston Dynamics Atlas video and how Atlas is getting more agile through simulation. Mike Oitzman reviews his recent trip to CES 2023, and features interviews with Aeolus Robotics Head of Product, Dan Haddick. Next we talk to Robosen Chief Marketing Officer Tony Crisp about the capabilities of Optimus Prime toy robot, and what's next on their roadmap. Finally, Mike recaps the recent IAC @ CES autonomous car race and interviews IAC founder Paul Mitchell.

Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman recap the top moments and biggest stories that happened in the robotics industry during 2022. Thanks again to all our listeners and guests for another great year!

This week we discuss the issue of police officers using robots with lethal force in emergency situations. After an initial 8-3 vote approving such a measure, San Francisco's board of supervisors reversed course this week and temporarily banned its police officers from using robots with lethal force. To break this all down, we're joined by Paul Scharre, Vice President and Director of Studies at the Center for a New American Security. ​Paul previously worked in the Office of the Secretary of Defense where he played a leading role in establishing policies around unmanned and autonomous systems and emerging weapons technologies.