Hardware Podcasts

264: Inside Automated: Asking the Right Questions about Robotics and AI with Brian Heater, Managing Editor at A3 and Host of the Automated Podcast

Manufacturing Happy Hour · 2 Dec 2025 · 52m

What this episode covers

Brian Heater, Managing Editor at A3 and host of the 'Automated' podcast, discusses the nuances of covering robotics and AI, emphasizing the importance of long-form interviews to uncover genuine insights from industry pioneers like Mark Roper and Rodney Brooks. He highlights the critical gap between research-scale robotics and commercial viability, noting that while Amazon has achieved massive scale, most humanoid startups are still far from reliable, safe production. Heater expresses optimism for the future of automation driven by human-centric applications, such as exoskeletons for workers, prosthetics inspired by personal history, and devices for Parkinson's patients, rather than just general-purpose humanoid robots.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
A3, Boston Dynamics, Psionic, Andromeda, Skip, Amazon, TechCrunch, Spin magazine
Products
Automated
Also
Nardwuar, Mark Roper, Rodney Brooks, Brad Porter, Catherine Zeeland, Adel Aktar, Grace Brown

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