ROBOTS have started to take over a humanoid robot factory where they will be assisting in the design of their own kind.
Agility Robotics has revealed plans to construct the world’s largest humanoid robot factory in Salem, Oregon.
The tech startup aims to “enable humans to be more human” by utilizing robots that can take care of common human tasks.
Even Amazon has backed the future-forward company, which has secured over $180million in private funding since its start in 2015.
Engineers behind the bipedal robot known as Digit say that they hope to produce more than 10,000 robots annually.
Each Digit stands just under 6 feet and has two legs and two arms.
The bot can perceive when a human or barrier is in its path and can navigate around them, allowing it to work seamlessly alongside people.
Between unloading trailers and moving packages, the Digit bot has been designed for an array of jobs.
The company hopes that its robots will alleviate some of the work that people no longer want to do.
Damion Shelton, co-founder and CEO of Agility Robotics told CNBC that he hopes the robots will help meet the rising demand for manufacturing labor.
The new factory will cover over 70,000 feet, which means there will be plenty of room for the new bots to get to work.
COO Aindrea Campbell told CNBC that plans for the ground-breaking facility are well underway.
“It’s a really big endeavor, not something where you flick a switch and suddenly turn it on,” Campbell said. “There’s kind of a ramp-up process.”
“The inflection point today is that we’re opening the factory, installing the production lines, and starting to grow capacity and scale with something that’s never been done before,” he added.
Agility noted that the new factory, called RoboFab, could employ up to 500 people in addition to its bot force.
The factory is set to open later this year and the Digit bot will be generally available to commercial customers in 2025.
Source: https://www.the-sun.com/tech/9214972/worlds-first-humanoid-robot-factory/
