Summary
This week, Mike Oitzman recaps the FIRA 2025 Ag Robotics event in Woodland, CA, highlighting the latest innovations in new automation solutions for agriculture. Featured guest this week is Danny Bernstein, founder of The Reservoir, an agtech incubator located in Salinas, CA. Danny takes us through the creation of The Reservoir and the vision for the organization to support new Ag automation startups.
Also on the show is a brief conversation with Dave Silver, Director of Orchard Autonomy at John Deere, who updates us on the latest orchard solutions from JD.
Companies mentioned in the recap:|
- Bonzai Robotics
- AgScout (vineyard yield management software)
- TensorField (hot oil weeding solution)
- Pittsburgh Robotics
- John Deere
- The Reservoir
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Autonomous mobile robots guided by Team Intelligence empower your workers to achieve their maximum potential, enabling you to scale efficiently and boost profitability.
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1:07:14
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1:07:14
RoboBusiness 2025 Recap
Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman recap the 2025 RoboBusiness event which took place last week in Santa Clara CA. The show features interviews with ten startups who were present at the show and many of whom participated in the 2025 Pitchfire event.
Here’s the list of interviews on the show (in order of appearance:
Apporv Shaudri from Roworks AI
Chongdu Xu from Forge AI (4rfg.ai)
David Ruth from Motogo
Doug Langen From 4D1
Katy Bradford from Rotate8
Kevin Hayes from Morelle
Lakshay Sharma from Cerulion (2025 Pitchfire winner)
Raghavender Sahdev from NuPort
Roby Lynn from R2 Labs
Toshi Quides from Sensible Robotics
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– SPONSOR –
Are manual picking operations or idle robots slowing your growth?
The cutting-edge Zebra Symmetry Fulfillment solution is engineered to reduce your costs per unit and give you an unbeatable competitive edge.
Autonomous mobile robots guided by Team Intelligence empower your workers to achieve their maximum potential, enabling you to scale efficiently and boost profitability.
Don’t settle for less—maximize your profits with Zebra.
Discover the future of fulfillment at https://www.zebra.com/fulfillment
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1:02:15
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1:02:15
Edge Computing and AI: A Conversation with Ben Wolff
In this episode, we sit down with Ben Wolff, CEO of Palladyne AI, to discuss the company's innovative strides in the AI and robotics industry. We dive into their focus on simplifying robot programming through an enhanced user interface, the development of autonomous swarming technology for drones, and their commitment to creating hardware-agnostic AI solutions.
Ben shares insights into the advantages of edge computing and emphasizes a customer-centric approach to product development, ensuring that their offerings are indispensable to users.
Tune in to learn how Palladyne AI is shaping the future of robotics and AI.
– SPONSOR –
Are manual picking operations or idle robots slowing your growth?
The cutting-edge Zebra Symmetry Fulfillment solution is engineered to reduce your costs per unit and give you an unbeatable competitive edge.
Autonomous mobile robots guided by Team Intelligence empower your workers to achieve their maximum potential, enabling you to scale efficiently and boost profitability.
Don’t settle for less—maximize your profits with Zebra.
Discover the future of fulfillment at https://www.zebra.com/fulfillment
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1:16:34
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1:16:34
Adrian Stoch: Driving Hai Robotics' U.S. expansion
On the show this week: Adrian Stoch, CEO Hai Robotics, USA
In the conversation with Stoch, he discusses his transition from GXO Logistics to a leadership role at HAI Robotics, driven by the company's customer-centric approach and innovative culture led by founder Richie Chen.
Adrian highlights the importance of aligning automation solutions with customer needs, emphasizing the shift towards large-scale automation in response to global supply chain challenges and labor constraints.
He also outlines his goals for Hai Robotics in the Americas, focusing on building a talented team and implementing lean processes to support growth and customer success.
###
– SPONSOR –
Are manual picking operations or idle robots slowing your growth?
The cutting-edge Zebra Symmetry Fulfillment solution is engineered to reduce your costs per unit and give you an unbeatable competitive edge.
Autonomous mobile robots guided by Team Intelligence empower your workers to achieve their maximum potential, enabling you to scale efficiently and boost profitability.
Don’t settle for less—maximize your profits with Zebra.
Discover the future of fulfillment at https://www.zebra.com/fulfillment
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58:47
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58:47
Robots, mergers and acquisitions with Peter Finn
In this episode, we reconnect with Peter Finn, Managing Director at BGL, to explore the evolving landscape of industrial technology, robotics, and AI. Peter shares insights on market trends post-COVID, the challenges and opportunities in the robotics sector, and the critical role of AI in shaping the future.
We delve into the dynamics of mergers and acquisitions, the potential of humanoid robotics, and the importance of adaptability in today's fast-paced technological environment.
Join us for a thought-provoking discussion on navigating the future of industrial innovation.
Join Steve Crowe and Mike Oitzman each week for discussions with leading roboticists, innovative robotics companies, and other key members of the robotics community.
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