MassRobotics announced the winners of its 2nd Form & Function University Robotics Challenge. Twelve teams from around the globe showcased their robotics and automation projects, competing for cash prizes. The idea of this challenge was deliberately ambiguous, to create a robot that looks good, Form, and works, Function. Components and software donated by partners AMD, Analog Devices, Danfoss, Festo, Lattice Semiconductor, Mitsubishi Electric, Novanta, Solidworks and Igus helped the student teams utilize the latest and greatest offerings in the industry. A panel of judges from the robotics industry selected the Seoul National University team with their deployable gantry system that 3D printed on the concrete floor of the convention center as this year’s first prize winner. The second prize was awarded to the Harvard University team with a Hydrocube capable of moving particles in liquid without touching them and the third prize was awarded to the Wentworth Institute of Technology team with an underwater inspection robot. 

Show attendees were intrigued with a robot that can detect and monitor embers in wildfires and picked the University of British Columbia team as this year’s Audience Choice awardee. 

---

At the Robotics Summit, MassRobotics showcased the companies in its inaugural Accelerator cohort; each company presented its technologies and business models, highlighting the impact of the Accelerator program. The MassRobotics Accelerator, powered by Mass Tech Collaborative, empowers the next generation of robotics startups through non-dilutive funding, custom-tailored curriculum, and personalized mentorship. This equity-free program supports and advances robotics technology entrepreneurs through a 13-week long in-person program, based out of MassRobotics in Boston’s Seaport Innovation District. Participating companies are:

Apparel Robotics, brd BOT, Gopher Motion, Hominid X, Mapless AI, Oligo, Robotics 88, rStream, SIMPL Automation, Yard Robotics

---

RBR 5O gala

We  have been selected for an RBR50 award for launching the world’s first non-dilutive robotics accelerator! Our program offers tailored mentorship from experienced robotics entrepreneurs and covers key business topics like customer discovery and fundraising.

Thanks to our partnership with Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, each company receives $100,000 in non-dilutive funding.Proud to support startups with the funding and education they need to succeed.

Congratulations to our resident startups Glidance Inc, Opteran, and Sereact for their recognition as RBR50 winners!

---

---

Healthcare Robotics Startup Catalyst

MassRobotics, in collaboration with partners FESTO, Mitsubishi Electric, Novanta and MITRE showcased its Healthcare Catalyst cohort at the Robotics Summit. The Healthcare Catalyst program, designed to support early-stage healthcare robotics startups, facilitated innovation sharing and connections with industry experts. This year’s cohort included: Able Innovations, AiM Medical Robotics, Cobionix, Dopl Technologies, Healthic, RIF Robotics, REEV, and Limber Technologies 

---

Women in Robotics Breakfast 

We kicked off the 2nd day of the Summit with a Women in Robotics breakfast featuring Dr. Kate Darling, a Research Scientist at MIT and leads the Ethics & Society research team at the Boston Dynamics AI Institute. Her work explores the societal and legal implications of robotics. She’s the author of The New Breed: What Our History with Animals Reveals about Our Future with Robots. In a personal and spirited fireside chat with our co-founder Joyce Sidopoulos, the audience learned about Kate’s academic career and she spoke about her perspectives on the intersection of technology, ethics and history.

There has been a lot written about how robots will replace us and take our jobs. But as an MIT Media Lab researcher and technology policy expert she argues just the opposite, suggesting that treating robots with a bit of humanity, more like the way we treat animals, will actually serve us better.  She believes robots are likely to supplement―rather than replace―our own skills and relationships. 

Kate treated the audience and shared one of her “pet” social robots – a baby dinosaur.  She’s used this prop in workshops and it’s revealed how people treat it not as an object or robot, but as a pet!  There was a lot of audience participation and so many questions that we ran out of time.  We’re looking forward to continuing this new tradition – but will need a larger room next year!

---

MassRobotics Career Fair

The MassRobotics Career Fair, a technical career fair connecting top talent with industry companies, attracted 15 hiring companies and about 400 attendees. 

---

In addition, the Summit featured a range of programs and showcases, including the MassRobotics Resident Startup Alley, a showcase of technologies, offering a glimpse into the future of robotics innovation. Participating companies included

Tatum Robotics, Cogniteam, Cleo Robotics, ATDev, Opteran, Southie Autonomy, Gaia AI, More Ways  US Positronix, Radmantis, MagLev Aero, Glidance, Black-I Robotics, GreenSight, Peyk, and Ubiros 

The MassRobotics 7th Annual Robot Block Party will take place September 28, 2024 in Boston’s Seaport district. Sign up to request exhibition space to showcase robotics technology or  provide a demo  here. For sponsorship, inquire here.