Articles about robots

WSU’s inflatable robotic apple-picker could take a bite out of farm labor shortages

Researchers inWashington State University’s School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering said the robot can see an apple, extend and retract to pick fruit in about 25 seconds. Read More

AI-powered robots are helping AWS extend the life of data center electronics

Amazon Web Services has successfully integrated AI-empowered robots into its system for reusing and recycling used data center electronics. Read More

WSU researchers develop an AI robot that uses a puff of air to find and pick ripe strawberries

Picking strawberries may seem simple, but it has proven surprisingly difficult for even the most sophisticated of robots. Berries often… Read More

Inside Seattle’s new Sweetgreen restaurant, where a large robot helps the humans make your salad

A worker at the new Sweetgreen restaurant location in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood bangs out orders in no time and… Read More

Meet Grasshopper, an underwater robot helping restore critical eelgrass meadows

The initial launch of the marine robot into the waters of Washington’s Puget Sound was a bit choppy. The tethered… Read More

Automated parking garage in Seattle condo tower gets even more robotic with EV charging bays

An automated parking garage beneath a luxury condo tower in downtown Seattle is calling in reinforcements, with robotic arms that… Read More

AI-backed robots roll through Seattle construction site, speeding build process and improving safety

A couple of high-tech workers are part of the crew helping to construct a new residential tower in Seattle’s Belltown… Read More

Do robots harm or help hospitality labor shortages? New research warns of worker anxieties

New research suggests that using robots to address workers shortages in hospitality jobs such as food service and hotel work… Read More

Amazon’s Astro robot gets its first job, going to work as a security guard

Amazon is rolling out its Astro robot as a security guard for businesses, using its HD periscope and night vision… Read More

A first-hand look at Amazon’s new ‘Sequoia’ warehouse robotic system

SUMNER, Wash. — Can robots make warehouses both faster and safer? That’s the Holy Grail of modern logistics, and it’s… Read More

Univ. of Washington researchers roll out tiny, battery-free, autonomous robot called ‘MilliMobile’

University of Washington researchers are rolling out another tiny robotic breakthrough, this time in the form of an autonomous device… Read More

New robots are making Amazon’s warehouses more efficient — can they also make them safer?

AUSTIN, Texas — It’s lunchtime at Amazon’s AUS2, a six-story warehouse set between housing subdivisions and a state highway on… Read More

Olis Connect device monitors operation of metal-bending robot

Olis Robotics raises $4M to take systems for remote robot management to next level

Seattle-based Olis Robotics has raised $4.1 million to explore new markets for tools that make it possible to monitor and… Read More

Amazon’s Sparrow is leaving the nest: Trailblazing warehouse robot is ready for a wider rollout

SAN MARCOS, Texas — Just off Interstate 35, midway between San Antonio and Austin, the newest member of Amazon’s robotic… Read More

Last chance to register for the GeekWire Summit, this Thursday and Friday in Seattle and online

The agenda is set, the speakers are ready, and we’re looking forward to seeing hundreds of you for the GeekWire… Read More

Robotic coffee barista maker led by ex-AWS engineer raises $8.3M to open more retail locations

A Seattle coffee company is aiming to change the way lattes and espressos are made. No, it’s not Starbucks. It’s… Read More

Amazon consumer robotics leader Ken Washington joins GeekWire Summit lineup

Ken Washington has been preparing for his job as Amazon’s vice president and GM of consumer robotics for his entire… Read More

Podcast

Robot law: Public policy, legal liability, and the new world of autonomous systems

Algorithmic disgorgement might sound like a phrase from a science-fiction horror film. In fact, it’s a new tool for regulators… Read More

Amazon will buy Belgium-based Cloostermans to boost warehouse robotics operations

Amazon will acquire Cloostermans, a Belgium-based warehouse machinery company, in the latest expansion of the e-commerce giant’s warehouse robotics. The… Read More

Podcast

GeekWire at the Ballpark: AM radio vs. digital audio; robot umpires; and Amazon cuts the line

Sitting in the stands down the first base line Thursday at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, I was feeling like a… Read More

With new warehouse robots, Amazon looks to invent its way out of its safety problems

LAS VEGAS — Amazon unveiled a new fleet of robots and automated systems, including the first fully autonomous robot that… Read More

Inside an Amazon robotic sortation center: How automation is changing the ‘middle mile’

IMPERIAL, Pa. — For a first-hand look at how robots and automation are changing logistics, we recently visited “PIT9,” an… Read More

Podcast

How Jeff Wilke’s industrial roots guided him at Amazon, and inspired him to help revive U.S. manufacturing

PITTSBURGH — In his 22 years at Amazon, including his role as the first CEO of the company’s Worldwide Consumer… Read More

Amazon preps for a ‘multi-robot’ world: RoboRunner cloud service builds on its own warehouse tech

The concept of “multi-cloud” has become widely accepted in the tech industry, as companies use different cloud vendors for various… Read More

Amazon details how its warehouse robots are designed to help humans work safely

Bert and Ernie, Scooter and Kermit may have started out as warm and fuzzy Muppet characters, but now they’re part… Read More

ManipulaTHOR training software from AI2 gives virtual robots a hand — and an arm

You can lead a virtual robot to a refrigerator, but you can’t make it pull out a drink. This is… Read More

Microsoft industrial designer leads Seattle team and ‘Big Dill’ in ‘BattleBots’ TV competition

A team of robot builders from Seattle is competing in upcoming episodes of “BattleBots: Bounty Hunters,” led by an industrial… Read More

Charge! WiBotic’s Commander software plots the power plan for fleets of robots

It’s hard enough to remember to keep your smartphone charged up, so can you imagine how much harder it’d be… Read More

Spotted: Amazon robot maps sidewalks north of Seattle, laden with cameras and sensors

While I was out on an ordinary drive through Everett Saturday morning I spotted something interesting: An unmarked six-wheeled robot being driven down the sidewalk on Broadway… Read More

Sexbot or not? Ethicist stimulates debate on the senior set’s need for companionship

Are sex robots just what the doctor ordered for the over-65 set? In a newly published research paper, a bioethicist… Read More