Agility’s New Manufacturing unit Can Construct 1000’s of Humanoids a Yr

Agility Robotics has introduced the opening of a 6,500 square-meter manufacturing facility devoted to constructing its Digit humanoid robotic. The manufacturing facility is positioned in Salem, Oregon, which, within the opinion of this native Oregonian, is a superb state by which to find something. At peak capability, ‘RoboFab’ will make use of 500 people (working alongside a bunch of Digit robots) and can be capable to produce “greater than 10,000 robots per yr,” a staggering quantity contemplating that Earth’s present inhabitants of humanoid robots possible numbers within the low a whole lot at most.

The manufacturing facility has been beneath building since final yr, and is “set to open later this yr,” in accordance with Agility’s press launch. In 2024, Agility anticipates that they’ll have “manufacturing capability of a whole lot of Digit robots within the first yr, with the potential to scale to greater than 10,000 robots per yr.” Note that when Agility is referring to “manufacturing capability,” the corporate shouldn’t be going as far as to recommend that they’ll be promoting that many robots, simply that they’re theoretically able to making them, though scaling this up is certainly not trivial.

One of the issues that Agility goes to have to determine as a part of this course of is find out how to effectively construct after which assist advanced robots at this scale, which is a vastly completely different downside than constructing a pair dozen robots for analysis and business pilots. This contains every part from provide chain (what number of actuators do 10,000 robots a yr want and the place the heck are you going to search out them?) to manufacturability—stuff like, how are you going to decrease the variety of instances it’s important to connect one factor into one other factor whereas placing your robotic collectively? Depending in your perspective, these issues are both fascinating or terrifying (or perhaps each) however both means they’re not issues that humanoid robots have actually needed to cope with earlier than. So, kudos to Agility for getting thus far—the onerous half begins now, after they have to search out individuals to really purchase all of those robots.

Agility says that its first accomplice prospects can anticipate supply of their Digits subsequent yr, and the remainder of us will see common availability in 2025.