Category: robots
iRobot’s latest Roomba can detect pet poop (and if it fails, you’ll get a new one)
Over the past two decades, iRobot has steadily evolved its Roombas from being fairly dumb robotic dirt suckers to devices that are smart enough to unload their own bins. Now with the $849 Roomba j7+, the company is ready to take on its greatest challenge yet: Pet poop. It's iRobot's…
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Oh hey, Xiaomi has its own creepy robot dog now
Xiaomi has today announced the CyberDog, an open-source quadruped robot intended for developers to “build upon” and create applications for. The machine, which resembles a beefier version of Boston Dynamics’ Spot, is a showcase for Xiaomi’s engineering know-how, including its proprietary servo motors. Xiaomi Running the show is a version…
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The Morning After: Lucasfilm hired a YouTuber with deepfake skills
The power of deepfake tech to hone digital effects into incredibly realistic video can’t be underestimated. We’ve seen a top-level Tom Cruise impersonator transformed with a high-level deepfake artist, and now companies — and film studios — are taking notice. Luke Skywalker's CGI face in The Mandalorian was met with…
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Why every robot needs a spiffy hat
First developed more than 100,000 years ago, clothing is one of humanity’s earliest — and most culturally significant — inventions, providing wearers not just protection from the environment and elements but also signifying social status, membership in a community and their role within that group. As robots increasingly move out…
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Alphabet’s latest moonshot aims to make industrial robots more practical
Alphabet has launched another company in its X moonshot factory, and this one may be its most ambitious robotics project to date. The just-opened firm, Intrinsic, plans to make industrial robots more accessible to people and businesses that couldn't otherwise justify the effort involved to teach the machines. You could…
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Expenses startup Pleo preps $100M Series C funding, launches new bill payments service
Late-stage Fintech startup Pleo, which offers expense management tools and ‘smart’ company Mastercards, says it plans to raise a Series C round of funding this summer. It’s also launching a B2B bill payments service this week. Co-founder and CEO Jeppe Rindom told me via a call: “We have money until…
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