2023 yr in overview: GenAI, humanoids dominate robotics business

December 22, 2023

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On the present this week, editors Steve Crowe, Gene Demaitre, and Mike Oitzman sit down and overview their favourite robotics information tales from 2023.

This episode additionally options UC Berkeley’s Ken Goldberg, Work together Evaluation’ Ash Sharma, ASTM Worldwide’s Aaron Prather, The New Warehouse’s Kevin Lawton, and Formant’s Jeff Linnell. All of them share their ideas on essentially the most fascinating robotic information of the yr.

On the prime of our checklist is the splash that generative AI and humanoid robots have made this yr, and the audio system additionally present a snapshot of the state of the robotics business.

Prime tales of the yr

So what have been the most important robotics information tales of the yr?

Generative AI and its affect on robotics growth.
In 2023, builders introduced a historic variety of humanoid robots, together with the next:
Within the warehousing and logistics market, autonomous trailer unloading was one of many functions that matured as a number of distributors launched and deployed new programs into actual buyer functions for the primary time. That is an space to observe within the coming years as a result of trailer unloading stays a bottleneck in logistics workflows.
On the draw back, within the first half of 2023, the North American robotics market ordered 16,865 robots, down 29% in contrast with the primary half of 2022, in response to the Affiliation for Advancing Automation. Funding funding for robotics startups additionally dried up in comparison with current years.
Lastly, the most important failure of the yr and the most important setback got here with the California DMV rescinding of Cruise’s autonomous operations allow. This occurred after a number of incidents the place the GM unit’s robotaxis didn’t function successfully on public roads. In consequence, Cruise ceased all autonomous automobile (AV) operations within the U.S., made modifications to govt management, and laid off 24% of its workforce. These occasions rocked the autonomous driving market in 2023 and put large strain on the remaining AV distributors.