Robots are creating work for at least one kind of human:
venture capitalists. They poured $172 million into robotics startups last year,
according to an annual survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP—nearly triple
the $60 million two years earlier. Travis Deyle, a robotics blogger who keeps
his own yearly tally, pegs it even higher—at least $250 million in 2013.
Mr. Deyle attributes the surge in part to high-profile
acquisitions of small companies by the tech giants. Amazon.com bought Kiva
Systems, a maker of warehouse robots, for $775 million in cash in 2012. Google,
meanwhile, recently went on a shopping spree—snapping up a number of small
robotics companies, including one that builds an experimental robot funded in
part by the U.S. Marine Corps., that can carry 400 pounds of gear over 20 miles
of rough terrain.
The wave of money is funding a new breed of robots.
In the past, robots worked mostly on factory floors—often
locked behind gates to keep them from smashing into people as they did their
jobs. But new technologies, including sensors and wireless connections that
allow robots to move around obstructions and even find their way around a busy
hotel or office, have enabled robots to do more varied tasks as well as
function alongside people.
Steve Cousins, chief executive and founder of Savioke in
Santa Clara, Calif., says he saw a shift in sentiment among venture
capitalists. Mr. Cousins’ company builds a robotic butler that hotels
can use to shuttle items to guest rooms. It’s currently operating in one hotel
in California but a host of other companies have expressed interest in the
machines. Savioke raised $2.6 million earlier this year, above the target of
$1.75 million to $2.5 million.
Click
here to access the full article on The Wall Street Journal.