Clean energy: Scrubbing wind turbines with robots nets Aerones $39M

Aerones, a robotics startup that scrubs and inspects wind turbines so humans don’t have to, secured $38.9 million in fresh funding this month from dozens of undisclosed investors, TechCrunch has learned. Wind turbines produce clean energy, but their towers tend to leak oil, which can corrode blades, increase wind resistance and pollute the ground below. Aerones’ remote-operated robots clean…

The combination of Artificial Intelligence and robotics in and outside the factory to automate tasks is indeed powerful. AI has begun to witness an increasingly common presence in robotic solutions in recent years, which has introduced flexibility and ability to learn in previously rigid applications. 

Although AI is still at its beginnings, for some applications in the production sector, it has been a transformative technology although many are to experience its effect. Many companies have created innovations in this regard.

Read More: Travel Mate Robotics

Among them, Travelmate Robotics is one of the world’s leading robotic companies best known for their robotic case. By redefining “smart” consumer products, the company has truly innovated and disrupted the emerging IoT paradigm. By creating a robot with valuable cases, Travelmate has disrupted the market. 

Today, Toyota announced the launch of Toyota AI Ventures, a new venture capital subsidiary focused on startup tech companies working on artificial intelligence. The fund has received an initial $100 million from the Toyota Research Institute (TRI), an AI-, robotics- and autonomous car-focused initiative created in 2015.

AI Ventures will direct its investments towards AI, robotics, autonomous vehicles and data and cloud technology. Along with funding, it will also offer companies it invests in both mentorship and support at its Silicon Valley headquarters. "One of the biggest challenges entrepreneurs face is knowing if they're building the right product for the right market. We can help them navigate that uncertainty, and we're committed to doing so in a founder-friendly way because their success is our success," said TRI VP Jim Adler in a statement. AI Ventures says it will also be proactive in how it tracks down companies to invest in. Rather than only considering pitches from those seeking investors, it will also seek out and support new companies aiming to solve key research challenges the fund is interested in.

So far, the fund has invested in three startups. Silicon Valley-based Nauto designs systems for companies that monitor their drivers and road environments in order to prevent accidents and curtail bad driving. SLAMcore is a UK company that develops algorithms for smart tech, like drones and self-driving vehicles, that allow them to create a map of their surroundings and position themselves within it. And the third company, Intuition Robotics, is a social companion technology startup located in Israel.

Toyota joins a number of other companies forming AI-focused venture capital funds including Baidu, which established theirs last year, and Google's Gradient Ventures, which was announced today. In a statement TRI CEO Gill Pratt said, "TRI is growing quickly, and we recognize the critical importance of expanding our collaboration with the world's brightest entrepreneurial talent. This venture is a major step towards our mission to empower talented entrepreneurs who share Toyota's commitment to enhancing the quality of human life."

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Toyota