Latest news with #SamirMenon
Mint
02-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
Unicorn startup that makes ‘superhuman' robots plots path to IPO
The robots are coming, but their arrival might be welcome if artificial-intelligence unicorn startup Dexterity has its way. California-based Dexterity programs what it describes as 'superhumanoids": large industrial robots built to do physically demanding and dangerous tasks. The aim, says founder and chief executive Samir Menon, isn't to replace humans but to amplify them. 'You can try to do robotics in a way that you're replacing people or you can try to do it in a way that you're supercharging people," the 40-year-old said in a recent interview on the sidelines of the ATxSummit in Singapore. In the AI gold rush of the past years, the startup founded by Menon in 2017 has raked in millions in investment. At a $1.65 billion valuation, it's secured 'unicorn" status. Dexterity's robots, designed to operate at temperatures and altitudes unfriendly to humans, have attracted partnerships with U.S. delivery giant FedEx and Japan's Sumitomo Corp. Dexterity's robots are manufactured via partnerships with industrial veterans like Japan's Kawasaki Heavy Industries, which do the manufacturing. Its flagship offering, the Mech, is a roving, two-armed robot that can perform heavy lifting. 'They're kind of inspired by 'Transformers' and 'Pacific Rim'," Menon said, in a nod to the Hollywood blockbusters starring giant robots. Dexterity is currently fundraising and eventually wants to go public in the U.S. Humanoid companies have been pulling in major investments in recent years. According to Crunchbase, six robotics companies became new unicorns last year. This year, more have joined the ranks, including The Bot Co., a robotics company focused on household chores which Crunchbase said was valued at $2 billion though it still hasn't released a product. With profitability for Dexterity still a few years away, Menon says he is prioritizing growth for now. Getting to the IPO stage rests on stable revenue streams and scaling the company, he said. Menon's upbeat on that front, seeing a not-too-distant future where industrial robots are commonplace in places like supermarkets and airports. Market analysts agree. A recent report by Morgan Stanley projects that by 2050, the humanoids market will top $5 trillion. Over 1 billion humanoids could be in use by then, primarily in commercial and industrial settings, it said. The parcel industry, retail and e-commerce sectors are already on the verge of mass adoption, said Menon, predicting take-up by large enterprises that will be 'a great foundational step for physical AI." That doesn't necessarily have to be bad news for the labor market, he said. If robotics firms want to be non-disruptive, they will focus on making robots that are superhuman in size, strength, and can work in extreme heat and cold, said Menon, who holds a doctorate in computer science from Stanford University. 'You can build [robots] in a way that you're copying the human shape, in which case it's designed to replace a human," he said. 'It's a strategic decision. We took the decision to do robotics in a way that supercharges people." Robots can help fill market gaps, the tech CEO argues. In many developed societies, declining birthrates and longer lifespans mean shrinking workforces need to support growing retiree populations. Bain & Company estimates that by 2030, the global shortage of manufacturing workers could reach nearly 8 million, boosting the need for robots to sustain economic growth. While humanoids won't replace swaths of workers overnight, they will take a meaningful share of physical jobs as tech advances and costs fall, the consulting firm said in a report. For Menon, worker deficits mean there is a way to introduce robots in markets like the U.S., Japan and Europe 'in a non-disruptive manner." Big improvements in standards of living in certain developed markets help too, he added. 'A lot of people don't really want to do extremely low-paying, very stressful tasks."
Mint
28-06-2025
- Sport
- Mint
Humanoid Robots Play Soccer Poorly in Chinese Exhibition Match
(Bloomberg) -- They looked like tipsy 7-year-olds stumbling about the soccer pitch. But the game that unfolded at an industrial zone in Beijing was a breakthrough for humanoid robots and the artificial intelligence that powered them through a 5-3 match on Saturday. Clad in black and purple jerseys with individual player numbers, diminutive humanoids faced off for two 10-minute halves, their movements controlled not by gesticulating coaches on the sidelines but by built-in algorithms. The spectacle was less about lightning-speed action — two players fell on top of each other — and more about demonstrating balance, agility and AI-powered decision-making. The bots pumped their fists in the air after each goal — not difficult since the goalies were pretty bad. The games were not just a novelty but a signal of how far machine autonomy has progressed — and a showcase for Chinese institutions in particular. The matches featured multiple teams from the leading Tsinghua University as well as institutions like the Beijing Information Science and Technology University. One Tsinghua team called Vulcan won the championship following intense play, the China News Network reported. China is pouring money and talent into the field in a bid to steal a march on the rest of the world. The nation's $47 billion robotics market already accounts for 40% of the global total, and is slated to grow at a 23% annual rate to be worth $108 billion by 2028, according to a report by Morgan Stanley earlier this month. 'China is not only the largest market but also is arguably the world's innovation hub, propelling cost efficiencies and next-gen robotics development,' the Morgan Stanley analysts said. China, never one to shy away from a spectacle-meets-innovation demonstration, has lined up a series of humanoid-robot events that are both technological milestones and provocative cultural events. There was a humanoid half-marathon in Beijing in April, and a bot kickboxing tournament in Hangzhou in May. And while these exhibited some striking advances in AI and robotics, they weren't quite so impressive as spectator sports. Robotic limbs flailed in the air and some robots keeled over at the kickboxing tournament, while only six of the 21 humanoid marathon runners completed the race. Some swerved and fell, and one unfortunate bot's head rolled off near the start. Despite their wobbliness, the robot soccer players in Beijing demonstrated visual recognition and positioning abilities, aided by cameras and sensors. They could, for instance, detect the ball from as far away as 60 feet (18.3 meters) with 90% accuracy. The robots were also able to identify the goal, the pitch, field lines and opponents, and make playing decisions based on these inputs — technological improvements that indicate how far the machines have come. 'Such demonstrations with human-form robots are currently focused on inspiring people's imaginations,' said Samir Menon, founder and chief executive officer of Palo Alto-headquartered robotics startup Dexterity, Inc. 'There'll be thousands of different types of robots, and hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of types of applications.' The soccer robots used AI techniques like deep reinforcement learning — a sophisticated system based on trial and error in many simulated situations — to make real-time decisions like passing, dribbling and shooting, or predicting when and where a teammate will move. Such events emphasize Beijing's goal to deploy increasing numbers in real-world applications, and prove testing grounds to evaluate the machines for stability, efficiency and safety aspects in human proximity. Saturday's humanoid football league was a preview for the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games that China is set to host on Aug. 15–17 in Beijing. The event will include 11 humanoid sports events, including gymnastics, track and field and soccer. More stories like this are available on
