In Episode 213 of The Robotic Report Podcast, hosts Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman recap the most important robotics information of the week.
Dustin Vaughan, VP of R&D for robotics at Asensus.
This week’s present options Dustin Vaughan, vp of analysis and growth for robotics at Asensus Surgical. He discusses the strategic route and priorities of his workforce, with a give attention to the event of the Luna platform.
Vaughan explains how performance-guided surgical procedure and the mixing of augmented intelligence can improve scientific assist programs. He additionally addresses the challenges of navigating regulatory landscapes and cybersecurity issues whereas noting the potential of robotics and automation within the medical area.
Vaughan says the way forward for surgical robotics is vibrant, notably in pediatric care. As well as, he touches on the function of AI in enhancing surgical outcomes. Asensus was a 2025 RBR50 award winner for its Senhance system.
Additionally featured through the information part is Anders Beck, vp of expertise at Common Robots, with a producer’s perspective on the newest collaborative robotic requirements.
Present timeline
- 05:39 – Dialog with Anders Beck, VP of expertise, Common Robots
- 14:37 – Information of the week
- 27:30 – Dialog with Scott Kuindersma, VP of robotics analysis at Boston Dynamics
Information of the week
Determine AI turns into a humanoid robotics unicorn with Sequence C funding
With its Sequence C funding spherical, Determine AI Inc. this week stated it has surpassed $1 billion in dedicated capital, bringing its post-money valuation to $39 billion. The San Jose, Calif.-based firm is working towards general-purpose robotics.
Determine AI stated it plans to construct out its Helix embodied intelligence platform and the BotQ high-volume manufacturing setting unveiled in March. The corporate beforehand introduced plans to ship 100,000 humanoids over the following 4 years.
The race to develop a commercially viable humanoid robotic has gotten a lot of gas recently, with UBTECH lately securing $1 billion in financing to scale manufacturing and Dyna Robotics elevating $120 million in its Sequence A spherical to construct a scalable basis mannequin.
Jaime Lee from Tamarack World appeared in Episode 147 in March 2024. Return and take heed to this podcast installment to get a greater sense of the joy shared by the investor neighborhood for the promise of humanoids.
Rethink Robotics shuts down — once more
Rethink Robotics Inc., which rose as a force- and power-limited arm pioneer, has shut down for a second time. Robotics innovators Rodney Brooks and Ann Whittaker co-founded Heartland Robotics in 2008 with the intent of making low-cost robots. In 2012, the then-Boston-based firm renamed itself Rethink Robotics and launched the two-armed Baxter, one of many first so-called cobots. It was initially fashionable with researchers.
Nonetheless, Rethink’s robots suffered from nagging issues with precision and repeatability due to the selection of collection elastic actuators. In 2018, Rethink went bankrupt, and HAHN Group acquired its mental property (IP).
By September 2024, United Robotics Group relaunched Rethink and returned the corporate from Germany to the U.S. Nonetheless, its newest Reacher robotic arms, Ryder autonomous cell robots, and Riser cell manipulators introduced new challenges.
Catch the newest on humanoid and surgical robotic growth at RoboBusiness 2025. Be part of Deepu Talla, vp of robotics and edge AI at NVIDIA, for a keynote titled “Bodily AI for the New Period of Robotics.”
