Retail

NowRX 400x275NowRX, a technology-powered pharmacy looking to provide same-day prescription delivery and telehealth services, has partnered with Hyundai Motor Group to explore the use of new solutions in the delivery of prescription medications, including autonomous vehicles.

 

BerkshireGrey BGFlex400x275Berkshire Grey, which develops artificial intelligence-enabled robots to help automate supply chain processes, has announced the general availability of its next-generation mobile robotic platform, BG Flex.

 

SaviokeSeaview400x275Savoike, which develops secure and contact-free service robots for room service and other deliveries, has announced that Seaview Investors LLC has added the company’s Relay Service Robot to each of its hotels. 

 

ConciergeRobot400x275As pandemic mitigation measures have extended into community settings around the world over the past two years, so too have robot helpers. We are now increasingly seeing facility managers deploying robots in commercial and residential buildings, schools, airports, railway stations and more to help keep communities safe. 

 

ABB Selfridges400x275Industrial robot manufacturer ABB is demonstrating the future of retail with a 3D printing demonstration at Selfridges, one of London’s premier department stores on Oxford Street. Throughout April, the demonstration in a window display shows an ABB robot 3D printing a variety of personalized designer objects made from Parley Ocean Plastic – intercepted marine plastic debris collected from Parley’s Global Cleanup network.

 

PuduMarchLaunch400x275China’s Pudu Robotics, which develops commercial service robots, held a new product launch in Shenzhen, introducing four new robots. Under the theme of “3+X”, the company announced three delivery robots – SwiftBot, PUDU A1 and PUDU D1 – and a new cleaning robot, the PUDU SH1.

 

BearRoboticsServi400x275Bear Robotics, which develops hospitality robots and artificial intelligence solutions, has announced raising $81 million in a Series B funding round. The company said it will use the funding to add new products and expand into new markets around the world.

 

BrainInventoryClean400x275Robotics World recently spoke with Josh Baylin, vice president of product and marketing at Brain Corp., about the latest advances in autonomy, the future of multi-task robots and multi-robot deployments, and the need for interoperability.

 

RoboAds RA 200 400x275RoboAds, an artificial intelligence robotics startup that has developed “the world’s first advertising robot,” has announced its latest version - the RA-200. 

 

KiwiBotTeam400x275Kiwibot, which develops sidewalk delivery robots, has announced raising a pre-Series A round of funding of about $7.5 million from five investors. The company also announced a multimillion-dollar contract expansion with food services and facilities management company Sodexo. The company said the contract and funding will enable it to expand its robot fleet, with the goal of having more than 1,200 robots delivering food and packages across 50 U.S. college campuses by the end of 2022.

 

TokinomoRobot400x275Tokinomo, a startup focusing on interactive in-store brand activation systems, has announced it raised $1.7 million to expand its product line and fuel global expansion. The company is building solutions for consumer goods companies and retailers that engage, advertise and capture data at the point of sale. Its main product is a robotic point-of-sale (POS) display system that promotes products in grocery stores that “results in brand awareness, brand recall, and sales lift.”

 

Coco Robots400x275Coco, a Los Angeles-based remotely piloted delivery service, has announced service for customers in Austin, Texas. The company said it also plans to expand to Dallas, Houston, and Miami in the next few months, supported by its recent Series A funding round of $56 million.

 

LocusPicks400x275Locus Robotics, which develops autonomous mobile robots for fulfillment warehouses, has announced that its robots picked a record-breaking 120 million units globally on behalf of its retail and third-party logistics (3PL) partners. The company said this represents a 71% increase over the number picked during the 2020 holiday season. On average, the company’s LocusBots picked more than 2.1 million units daily amidst supply chain delays, labor shortages, and possible product outages.

 

BrainSams400x275Sam’s Club, the membership warehouse club division of Walmart, has announced a national, chain-wide rollout of an inventory scanning feature to its existing fleet of robotic scrubbers. The deployment is in partnership with Brain Corp and Tennant Company, which recently launched its Inventory Scan attachment option.

 

SkyDropLogo400x275Flirtey has announced that it rebranded its last-mile drone delivery business to SkyDrop. The company will continue to offer OEM services of drone delivery systems for operators of last-mile delivery, as well as for existing drone companies around the world.

 

ServeMilestone400x275As companies continue to grow, innovate and deploy their robotics and autonomous technologies, certain milestones are met. This week, two companies made announcements regarding achieving new goals – sidewalk delivery firm Serve Robotics said it was the first autonomous vehicle company to complete commercial deliveries at Level 4 autonomy; and WeRide announced it reached 10 million kilometers (6.2 million+ miles) of autonomous driving on public roads, with 2.5 million km in fully driverless mode.