Amazon hires AI robotics company Covariant's founders and 25% of its staff and signs non-exclusive license agreement for its robotics platform model
On August 30, 2024 local time, Amazon announced that it had signed a new commercial agreement with AI robotics company
Amazon hires from AI robotics startup Covariant, licenses technology
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-covariant-ai-robots
Amazon hires Covariant founders, inks AI licensing deal
https://www.geekwire.com/2024/amazon-hires-covariant-founders-inks-licensing-deal-with-robotics-ai-startup-in-latest-reverse-acquihire-deal/
Amazon hires the founders of AI robotics startup Covariant | TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2024/08/31/amazon-hires-the-founders-of-robotics-ai-startup-covariant/
Amazon acqui-hires Covariant for foundational robotics models and key AI talent
https://the-decoder.com/amazon-acqui-hires-covariant-for-foundational-robotics-models-and-key-ai-talent/
Amazon has developed and deployed the world's largest fleet of industrial robots and has pioneered the use of machine learning models over the past few decades to drive innovation in supply chain, logistics, and warehouse automation. Amazon develops AI technologies and AWS infrastructure to operate hundreds of thousands of mobile robots, robotic arms, and other automated systems that support Amazon's workforce as they deliver billions of customer orders each year.
Amazon's industrial robots, such as Proteus and Sequoia , all use AI to understand the environment they operate in and work with operations teams to execute tasks. In the case of Sparrow, combined with Digit, a robot that can move while grasping and handling objects, the company has been able to speed up inventory identification by up to 75% and order fulfillment by up to 25%.
Amazon introduces new robots 'Sequoia' and 'Digit' to its warehouses, successfully speeding up inventory identification by up to 75% and order processing by up to 25% - GIGAZINE
Amazon has reportedly succeeded in replacing 100,000 workers with robots by introducing a fleet of industrial robots.
Amazon, the world's second-largest employer, replaces 100,000 humans with 750,000 robots, a 'microcosm of how AI will change the workplace' - GIGAZINE
Amazon's robots are involved in various processes related to product delivery, such as 'moving inventory,' 'sorting products,' and 'identifying customer orders.' These robots take on heavy and repetitive tasks, making work safer and more efficient for employees. Amazon is using the insights it has accumulated about robots over the years to build AI models and conduct fundamental research to further improve the safety and adaptability of its systems.
To ensure this fundamental research can benefit more than just Amazon, Amazon announced a new commercial agreement with AI robotics company Covariant. Covariant builds advanced AI models that enable robots to see, reason, and act in their surroundings, supporting a range of warehouse automation tasks. Amazon cited Covariant's 'iterative, customer-centric approach to developing technology that solves the toughest challenges in warehouse automation, and its deep understanding of end-to-end processes.'
The new commercial agreement will see Amazon acquire a non-exclusive license to Covariant's robotics-based model, which will drive new ways to democratize how robotic systems learn, providing dynamic opportunities to use automation to make operations safer and improve customer delivery. As part of this effort, Amazon explained, it will expand its AI and robotics team to leverage world-class talent to drive modern automation processes.
Additionally, Covariant announced that a group of research scientists and engineers, representing approximately a quarter of its workforce, and three of its co-founders, Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen and Rocky Duan, will join Amazon's Fulfillment Technology and Robotics team. This group of engineers will drive Covariant's technology development and implementation within Amazon's operations and continue to develop innovative AI solutions.
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