Einride AB, which has been developing autonomous and remotely operated electric trucks, today announced the first public demonstrations of its technology. The Stockholm-based company said that one human driver could control multiple Pods to address skills shortages and ever-increasing logistics demand. In the U.S. alone, there was a shortfall of 51,000 truckers and a workforce that was only 6% female prior to the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to Einride. In February, the company said...

Miso Robotics Inc., which makes the Flippy robot for frying food, announced the official start of its Series C equity crowdfunding campaign. The Pasadena, Calif.-based company announced its plan to raise up to $30 million last November, and it has obtained approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Miso is collaborating on the round with SeedInvest and Wavemaker Labs. Miso Robotics had a pre-funding valuation of $80 million last year, and it has already secured more than...

While the novel coronavirus pandemic began in China a few months ago, March 2020 was when it affected the global economy. Many governments and companies have ordered millions of people to work from home or shut down, but the robotics industry continues, with more than $2.7 billion in reported transactions last month. Granted, the majority of that amount was investment in self-driving car company Waymo early in March, when the economic slowdown was just beginning in some countries and...

As humans prepare to return to the moon, they will need robots to help them find resources, evaluate the environment, build habitats, and conduct missions. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration and crowdsourcing leader HeroX today launched the “Honey, I Shrunk the NASA Payload” competition to find designs for miniature payloads that could be sent to the moon “to fill strategic lunar knowledge gaps.” NASA said it wants to send small, robotic rovers the size of an iRobot Roomba...

Demand for robots to clean or move materials has never been higher, but developers and suppliers should understand exactly how and where they can add value. Brain Corp, which provides autonomy to mobile robots, and Savioke Inc., whose robots serve hotels and hospitals, have experience in addressing real-world needs. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, retailers and hospitals have become keenly aware of the need to protect and retain human workers. By using robots to relieve employees of...