The Association for Advancing Automation (A3), a robotics and automation trade group, celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024. The association now represents more than 1,280 member companies as it promotes automation technologies and ideas for businesses. “The success of A3 for the past five decades is directly attributable to the unflagging support of our members, the incredible advances in automation technology, and the resilience and talent of the team we’ve assembled,” said Jeff Burnstein, A3 President since 2007. “The last few years have been an especially exciting time as the use of robotics and other forms of automation has hit…
The Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute recently announced a continuation of its public-private cooperative agreement with the Department of Defense (DoD) Manufacturing Technology Program. The $35.4 million agreement will continue ARM Institute’s funding as a national Manufacturing Innovation Institute for through 2028, with an option to renew the contract again for another five years. If the DoD accepts the further renewal offer, ARM Institute's total possible primary investment increases to $70.4M over 10 years. The Institute’s original agreement with the DoD provided funding through January 2023. Following a successful review by the DoD Joint Defense Manufacturing Council (JDMC) in…
Innovation Works and the Pittsburgh Robotics Network recently opened applications for the second cohort of their Robotics Factory Accelerate Program. Through the program, selected companies receive funding of up to $100,000 and participate in a six-month program that helps robotics startups launch their businesses. Applications to the Accelerate Program’s second cohort are open through Feb. 29, 2024. According to the Robotics Factory, the second cohort will run from June through December 2024. Accepted companies are provided 12 months of office space at the Robotics Factory’s co-working space in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood, which features prototyping and testing shops. The Accelerate Program…
Augmented with computer vision, object detection and pathfinding, industrial robots and cobots are morphing into new types of intelligent devices. The recent advances in AI - like natural language processing - also demand that users take a fresh look at human-machine interactions. Is the market ready for the next phase in robotics evolution? Tune into this free discussion addressing these topics, and how AI plays a major role in how robots and cobots optimize workflows in organizations. Date: Wednesday, January 31, 2024 Time: 12:00 P.M. EST/9:00 A.M. PST Panelists will also discuss: new opportunities for AI-driven robotics applications; new rules…
An affiliate of private investment firm Angeles Equity Partners, LLC, recently announced its acquisition of Acieta LLC, a Midwest-based full-service industrial robotics manufacturer and integrator, from Mitsui & Co. (U.S.A.), Inc. Angeles holdings include robotics integrator RōBEX, along with subset brands Mid-State Engineering and +Vantage. With the acquisition of Acieta, Angeles intends to build a scaled robotics integration platform, expanding its manufacturing footprint within domestic markets. “We are excited about the combination of these two great companies and believe in the ongoing growth trajectory of this industry,” said Sam Heischuber, managing director at Angeles Equity Partners. Acieta expands Angeles’ machine…
Bluewhite, an agricultural robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) company specializing in data-driven autonomous farming, recently announced it secured $39M in Series C financing led by Insight Partners, with participation from new investors Alumni Ventures and LIP Ventures, among others. Existing investors Entrée Capital, Jesselson and Peregrine Ventures also participated in the financing round. The company, formerly Blue White Robotics, works with more than 20 permanent crop growers in the US, and will use the funds to further scale its agricultural autonomous tractor and farming services into new markets worldwide. “We've been excited to see Bluewhite defy the odds and successfully deploy its solution…
Netlogistik, an enterprise systems provider, recently announced a partnership to resell SVT Robotics’ SOFTBOT Platform. This partnership enables Netlogistik’s Blue Yonder WMS (warehouse management system) customers to deploy automation. The SOFTBOT integration platform also normalizes and aggregates supply chain data from disparate sources. “Our customers want to add automation to their warehouse environment, but it is not as simple as it sounds, given there are so many different automation types and technologies,” said Scott Zickert, managing partner of Netlogistik. “Once we integrate the Blue Yonder WMS into a client's operation, we can quickly and easily add picking systems, robots, put-away…
Farm-ng recently announced successful completion of its Series A funding round, raising over $10 million in capital to support development and deployment of its robotics and AI solutions. Amiga, its modular electric autonomous mobile robot (AMR) with AI computer, is marketed toward small- to mid-sized farms. Series A funding was led by Acre Venture Partners, with participation from Xplorer Capital, HawkTower, and 10 other institutional and individual investors. “We made a seed investment in farm-ng because we saw its potential in transforming the farming industry in an immediate way.” said Jonathan McQueen, co-founder and managing partner at Xplorer Capital. “We…
