# Ep. 20 | Dr. Aaron Edsinger, CEO & Co-founder of Hello Robot and Former Head of Robotics at Google on Humanity in Robots

- Show: [Moore's Lobby](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby)
- Published: 2021-03-18
- Length: 33m
- Episode: 5
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic
- Listen: https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/podcast/dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotics-at-google-on-humanity-in-robots

## Summary

Dr. Aaron Edsinger, CEO and co-founder of Hello Robot and former Head of Robotics at Google, discusses the philosophy behind building practical, non-humanoid robots like the Stretch mobile manipulator. He contrasts the iterative, customer-feedback-driven approach of startups with the closed-door development of large corporations like Google, emphasizing the importance of simplicity and pragmatism in robotics. Edsinger also reflects on his journey from MIT’s Humanoid Robotics Group to founding Mecca Robotics, highlighting the value of strong co-founder partnerships and open-source software in scaling hardware businesses.

## Chapters

- [0:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic#t=2) Introduction and Career Origins
- [3:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic#t=234) MIT, Rodney Brooks, and Human-Robot Interaction
- [14:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic#t=877) Founding Mecca Robotics and Google Acquisition
- [19:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic#t=1171) Hello Robot and the Stretch Mobile Manipulator
- [26:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic#t=1597) Open Source Software and Enterprise Robotics
- [29:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic#t=1763) Commercial Adoption and Assistive Use Cases

## Topics

- [Robotics & autonomy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/robotics-and-autonomy)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Open-source hardware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/open-source-hardware)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Hello Robot (company)
- Stretch (product)
- Google (company)
- Mecca Robotics (company)
- MIT (other)
- Rodney Brooks (other)
- ROS (tool)
- ROS 2 (tool)
- Microsoft (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Episode 163: Robots helping people - Aaron Edsinger](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2026-09-25-episode-163-robots-helping-people-aaron-edsinger) (Robot Talk)
- [Episode 109: Building robots at home - Dan Nicholson](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2025-02-14-episode-109-building-robots-at-home-dan-nicholson) (Robot Talk)
- [181: Leadership and Ethics in the Adoption of Robotics with Ryan Gariepy, CTO of Clearpath Robotics & OTTO Motors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-04-16-181-leadership-and-ethics-in-the-adoption-of-robotics-with-ryan-gariepy-cto-of-c) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [Podcast: Hello Robot exits stealth; White Castle turns to automation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2020-07-15-podcast-hello-robot-exits-stealth-white-castle-turns-to-automation) (The Robot Report Podcast)
- [264: Inside Automated: Asking the Right Questions about Robotics and AI with Brian Heater, Managing Editor at A3 and Host of the Automated Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-12-02-264-inside-automated-asking-the-right-questions-about-robotics-and-ai-with-brian) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2021-03-18-ep-20-dr-aaron-edsinger-ceo-co-founder-of-hello-robot-and-former-head-of-robotic. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Moore's Lobby.