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These Robots Follow You to Learn Where to Go
When Amazon introduced its home robot Astro earlier this year, it first showcased the robot following behind a person. It's a simple idea that has captured people's imaginations with depictions in science fiction, like R2-D2 and BB-8 from Star Wars, and in reality, with research projects like DARPA's robotic pack mule. Follower robots have been tapped for senseless pursuits like carrying a single bottle of water, but robots can also carry tools in a warehouse or just-picked fruit from an orchard to a packing station. Artificially intelligent machines trained to follow people or other machines can transform how we think about everyday objects, like carry-on luggage or a set of golf clubs. Now the makers of follower robots want to coordinate movement around the modern workplace.
Agerris Raises $6.5M for its Ag Tech Robotics and AI Platform
Agerris, an Australia-based robotics and AI platform for agriculture, announced over the weekend that it has raised $6.5 million (AUSD) in seed funding from Uniseed, Carthona Capital and BridgeLane Group. The startup was founded by Professor Salah Sukarrieh and began as research at the Australian Centre for Field Robotics at the University of Sydney (which is also a partner in Uniseed). From the looks of it, Agerris is building a modular robotics and AI platform that has broad applications for both plant and livestock farmers. According to a University of Sydney news post, Agerris has two main products. The "Swagbot" can autonomously monitor and identify weed issues, detect food and crops through computer vision, as well as herd livestock.