Lou Kudrav and his 8-year-old grandson Adryan had barely made it in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center door before they were accosted by a bright yellow robot that looked like a dog.
Although that particular bot was built by a Massachusetts firm, there were plenty of Pittsburgh-grown automations on display Wednesday at the third annual Robotics Discovery Day.
Founders like Izzy Hunter of Sensi Fit said it feels like the sector has exploded in only a few years. Ms. Hunter returned to the city after playing professional soccer in Australia to grow her sports tech startup, which uses sensors to track athletes’ speed and agility. She’s hoping a meeting with the Penguins next week could turn into her first contract with a Pittsburgh team.
Others have built solutions that are already deployed around the world.
Across the aisle from Kubota’s signature orange tractor, Moss Robotics was touting its own approach to digitize farms. Hardware lead Pravir Das said he has taken their lidar technology to farmers in New Zealand, who have never seen the lasers in action. “Now the other side of the globe can see it work,” he said.
Excitement was high as students from around the region swapped school buses for Xbox controllers and got face-to-face with humanoids and other regional robot mascots.
Their eyes lit up as hands-on demonstrations made the complex world of servos and coding instantly more accessible. Now in its third year, Discovery Day includes community groups, colleges and other organizations dedicated to building the sector from the ground up.
As Jen Gilburg, Pennsylvania’s deputy secretary of technology and entrepreneurship, puzzled over the business case for some of the startups, she said at least one thing is clear:
“The kids that are here are the workforce of the future and they’re going to be working alongside robotics.”
Others shared her enthusiasm. Lou Bojarski of Caterpillar said it was great to take a break from engineering to engage with the next generation. “The kids remind you that it’s fun,” he said.
The day saw a few new faces in addition to returning favorites such as Agility Robotics and Motional. Hummingbird was showing off warehouse drones that use a suction cup or a magnet to pick items off shelves, while Mapless AI highlighted a remote-control car that pilot testers can steer to and from Pittsburgh International Airport.
Several presenters spoke about the breadth of robotics applications, from medicine to sports to heavy industries like mining — all of which are benefitting from Pittsburgh talent.
“Robotics are becoming affordable and they are more accessible than ever before,” said Kirby Witte of Estat Actuation.
That makes it easier for small businesses like hers to buy products as well as to sell their components to a broadening market.
Robert Belle-Isle of Neya Systems said there’s nothing he would rather be doing than robotics. “I get to be at the forefront of technology. And I work too much because of it.”
Others spoke of the thrill of seeing coding come to life in the physical world. “Software is everywhere, but robotics helps you feel it. It gets you moving,” said Tarang Shah, a software engineer at Aurora Innovation.
For John Quayle, chief of staff at Four Growers, another agtech startup, it helps to move toward a better world.
“We all need cheaper groceries,” he said. “More fresh produce hopefully means that people can be more healthy.”
Meanwhile, a flurry of groups like the Pittsburgh Robotics Network and Innovation Works are focused on growing something closer to home: the robotics ecosystem. They are continuing to turn the region’s $62.7 million Build Back Better grant into opportunities for founders, companies and youngsters like Adryan, who was already asking how the technology could be customized to meet his own wild ideas.
First Published: November 20, 2024, 10:21 p.m.
Updated: November 21, 2024, 3:35 a.m.
