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From seeing Boston Dynamics’ Stretch robotic at work in a DHL facility to Alphabet closing down one in all its robotics subsidiaries, there was no scarcity of robotics information in February 2023. 

Listed below are the highest 10 hottest tales on The Robotic Report in February 2023. Subscribe to The Robotic Report Publication or take heed to The Robotic Report Podcast to remain up to date on the robotics tales it’s essential to learn about.

10. Mushy robotic wearable restores arm operate for folks with ALS

Some 30,000 folks within the U.S. are affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often known as Lou Gehrig’s illness. Now, a group of researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson College of Engineering and Utilized Sciences (SEAS) and Massachusetts Common Hospital (MGH) has developed a tender robotic wearable able to considerably aiding higher arm and shoulder motion in folks with ALS. Learn Extra

9. What slowdown? – December 2022 robotics investments attain $1.14B

December 2022’s 55 robotics investments totaled US $1.14B, a 7.7% enhance over December 2021’s funding complete. Funding into corporations offering robotics options for autonomous floor transportation akin to sensors, autonomy ‘stacks’ and ‘drivers’, and entire fabric programs, was notably sturdy. Learn Extra

8. Alphabet closes On a regular basis Robots amongst layoffs

Alphabet, Google’s dad or mum firm, is shutting down its subsidiary On a regular basis Robots, in keeping with reporting from Wired. On January 20, 2023, Alphabet introduced it will be shedding round 12,000 staff, 6% of its workforce, and On a regular basis Robots is likely one of the few tasks disbanded as a part of the funds cuts. Learn Extra

7. Fast Robotics to supply Yaskawa industrial robots

Fast Robotics introduced a brand-new integration with Yaskawa America, Inc., Motoman Robotics Div. (Yaskawa Motoman) that can convey industrial capabilities to Fast Robotics’ Fast Machine Operator (RMO). The corporate is now built-in with the whole Yaskawa robotics portfolio. Learn Extra

6. Fast Robotics and Common Robots group as much as speed up cobot deployments

Fast Robotics and Common Robots (UR) simply introduced a brand new partnership. UR, a Danish firm that makes collaborative robots (cobots), will provide Fast Robotics with collaborative robotic arms in order that it could arrange cobot work cells throughout North America. Which means Fast Robotics will have the ability to serve extra clients and hold the fast deployment instances that clients have come to count on, at the same time as Fast Robotics continues to develop throughout the nation. Learn Extra

5. 5 prime robotics developments to observe in 2023

Robotic installations hit an all-time excessive in 2021, with the Worldwide Federation of Robotics’ (IFR) knowledge exhibiting over 500,000 new industrial robots had been put in that yr. In North America, robotic gross sales hit an all-time excessive for the second yr in a row in 2022, in keeping with the Affiliate for Advancing Automation (A3), bringing in $2.38 billion. Learn Extra

4. How ChatGPT can management robots

Researchers at Microsoft, which has invested billions into OpenAI and not too long ago built-in ChatGPT into its Bing search engine, prolonged the capabilities of ChatGPT to manage a robotic arm and aerial drone. Microsoft launched a technical paper that describes a collection of design rules that can be utilized to information language fashions towards fixing robotics duties. Learn Extra

3. 10 industries China is specializing in automating

China’s Ministry of Trade and Data Expertise, together with 17 different businesses, has created a brand new motion plan referred to as the “Robotic + Software Motion Plan.” This plan lays out 10 industries the nation desires to deal with growing robotic programs for and overarching objectives for the nation’s robotics business to hit by 2025. Learn Extra

2. Inside Zoox’s upgraded robotaxi take a look at fleet

Since its founding eight years in the past, Zoox, an organization growing autonomous automobiles (AVs) and now a subsidiary of Amazon, has been working in the direction of its objective of making a purpose-built autonomous automobile, with no steering wheel. Zoox has an intensive, not too long ago upgraded testing fleet that’s verifying the effectiveness of its autonomous driving expertise. Learn Extra

1. Watch Boston Dynamics’ Stretch unload a DHL trailer

Boston Dynamics is formally placing its Stretch robotic into the hand of its clients. Its first industrial software is with DHL Provide Chain, an organization that Boston Dynamics has been collaborating with since 2018, when it started growing Stretch. Learn Extra