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Former Amazon Robotics Vice President and Scale AI CTO Brad Porter Raises $10M to Launch Collaborative Robotics

Tuesday, 14 June 2022 08:00 AM

Building Trustworthy, Adaptable, and Useful Robots To Safely Work Alongside People

SANTA CLARA, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 14, 2022 / Former Amazon Vice President and Distinguished Engineer, Robotics, Brad Porter, today announced that he and his team have raised $10M in funding to launch Collaborative Robotics. The round was led by Neo, with Khosla Ventures, Calibrate Ventures, with 1984 Ventures also participating. The funds will enable Collaborative Robotics to quickly onboard strategic new hires, accelerate R&D, and build out the new company's infrastructure.

Collaborative Robotics is building the next generation of robots designed to solve a wide variety of indoor and outdoor tasks. Based on a flexible mobility platform, the robots will be capable of exploiting structures inside warehouses while also navigating and adapting to less structured outdoor environments. The company's mission is to deliver robots that work safely alongside people in every field, from manufacturing, logistics, agriculture, and municipal services, to healthcare and hospitality, as well as functioning fluidly in more common, everyday chores.

"It was an easy decision to back Brad and Collaborative Robotics," said Ali Partovi, CEO of Neo. "We invest based on people, especially brilliant technical leaders. I've watched Brad build legendary teams over the last 20 years, and I have no doubt that his new startup will be just as successful and impactful as all his previous endeavors."

Robotics Industry Leadership
While at Amazon, Brad's teams were responsible for dramatically accelerating the company's robotics initiative, deploying hundreds of thousands of robots - from palletizers and sorters, to drones and sidewalk bots, to packaging automation, and storage and retrieval systems across Amazon's logistics infrastructure.

Most of Amazon's robots were task-specific and often caged off from people. Collaborative Robotics will take a much different approach and build robots that work alongside people in trustworthy, unobtrusive ways, while smoothly transitioning from one environment and task to another.

"Brad's leadership and track record spans large tech companies and Silicon Valley startups, where he built great teams and moved quickly to seize big opportunities," said Sven Strohband, partner and managing director at Khosla Ventures. "Collaborative Robotics is a prime example of an industry veteran with the vision to recognize a huge opportunity and the ability to assemble a world-class team to go after it."

Seizing an Opportunity
Robots that can work alongside humans, without requiring a separated workcell, are easier to integrate than other robotics, enabling rapid deployment in new environments without costly infrastructure. The ability to deploy into new pathways quickly also delivers a faster return on investment through improved productivity, product quality, and safety.

Collaborative robotics is the fastest-growing segment for new robotic deployments. The World Robotics 2021 Industrial Robots Report showed a record of three million industrial robots currently operating in factories around the world. Other market projections show growth of more than $10.5 billion in the next 5 years.

"AS the world continues to move to faster delivery, the logistics industry will require more flexible robotics that work collaboratively with associates in a wider variety of environments and buildings. We're very excited to see what Brad and his team will build," said Tim Collins, SVP Operations, Gopuff.

"I see a future where robots are integrated into every aspect of our lives. This new venture is the first step toward enabling that vision," said Brad Porter, founder, and CEO of Collaborative Robotics. "This is an ambitious initiative to transform the future of robotics and the future of work and in doing so, usher in a more sustainable, hospitable world."

About Collaborative Robotics
Collaborative Robotics is a team of innovators and builders redefining the future of human-robot interaction. The company is working to realize a world where robots are a trusted extension of familiar surroundings. Our products are trustworthy, adaptable and useful, solving real-world problems, delivering ROI, and improving experiences for customers and employees. For more information, visit us at https://co.bot.

CONTACT:
Escalate PR for Collaborative Robotics
[email protected]

SOURCE: Collaborative Robotics

Topic:
Company Update
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