In Episode 230 of The Robotic Report Podcast, hosts Mike Oitzman and Eugene Demaitre recap the main robotics information of the week and talk about their experiences on the Manifest 2026 provide chain commerce present in Las Vegas.
Present timeline
- 8:12 – Zoox robotaxi evaluate
- 6:20 – Information of the week
- 14:33 – Manifest occasion recap with Gene Demaitre and Mike Oitzman
- 34:08 – Interview with Sankalp Arora, CEO of Collect AI
- 41:58 – Interview with Ben Gruettner, chief income officer of Strong.AI
- 49:28 – Interview with Owen Nicholson, CEO of Slamcore
- 54:21 – Interview with Mason Cole, vp of gross sales at Slip Robotics
- 1:00:55 – Interview with Steven McKinley (chief working officer) and Jim Leifer (CEO) at Ambi Robotics
- 1:10:00 – Interview with Jackie Wu, CEO of Corvus Robotics
- 1:16:40 – Interview with Kevin Damoa, founder and CEO of Glid Applied sciences
- 1:22:37 – Interview with Eric Miller, co-founder and CEO of AutoPallet
Information of the week
Apptronik brings in one other $520M to ramp up Apollo manufacturing
Apptronik has raised a $520 million Sequence A-X funding spherical. This brings the Austin, Texas-based humanoid robotic developer’s whole Sequence A to greater than $935 million and its whole capital raised to just about $1 billion.
With the capital, Apptronik stated it’ll ramp up manufacturing of the Apollo robotic and develop its international community of business and pilot deployments. The corporate additionally plans to construct amenities for robotic coaching and knowledge assortment, in addition to to complete creating its newest robotic mannequin, which is about to debut on this 12 months.
Symbotic acquires autonomous forklift maker Fox Robotics
Symbotic has acquired Fox Robotics in a transfer that broadens its logistics robotics choices. The Wilmington, Mass.-based firm introduced the deal throughout its Q1 2026 earnings name.
Symbotic founder and CEO Rick Cohen stated the Fox Robotics acquisition offers Symbotic entry to a broader market in autonomous materials dealing with and the potential for introducing new options past present warehouse automation.
Whereas most of Fox Robotics’ clients will not be Symbotic clients, they do share one massive shopper: Walmart. Cohen stated he expects to carry guided fork vehicles to a wider viewers.
Boston Dynamics CEO Robert Playter steps down
Robert Playter, CEO of Boston Dynamics, has stepped down from the corporate. Playter took over as CEO in 2019 and led Boston Dynamics via its acquisition by Hyundai in 2020.
Previous to taking up as CEO, Playter served as chief working officer. His final day with Boston Dynamics will probably be Feb. 27. In response to the corporate, Playter plans to retire.
Amanda McMaster, Boston Dynamics’ chief monetary officer, will take over as interim CEO till the board of administrators finds its subsequent chief.
Playter took over as CEO at a vital time for Boston Dynamics. The corporate was lengthy recognized for its analysis platforms just like the hydraulically-powered Atlas humanoid however wished to show its know-how into industrial techniques. Playter helped to carry Spot, Stetch, and most not too long ago, a totally electrical model of Atlas to market.
