# How AMP Robotics is changing recycling; Festo wins GM gripper challenge

- Show: [The Robot Report Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast)
- Published: 2021-01-06
- Length: 50m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge
- Listen: https://soundcloud.com/robot-report-podcast/how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge

## Summary

Matanya Horowitz, founder and CEO of AMP Robotics, explains how the company uses AI and custom suction-based grippers to automate recycling sorting, detailing the evolution of their vision system from garage prototypes to industrial scale. He discusses the company's $55 million Series B funding, the impact of COVID-19 on labor shortages, and new data-centric revenue streams for commodity quality assurance. Josh Fox, an applications engineer at Festo USA, describes how his team won the MassRobotics-GM gripper challenge by developing a universal end effector combining Mag Switch magnetic grippers with Festo actuators to handle various sheet metal parts.

## Chapters

- [0:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=7) Introduction and AMP Robotics Overview
- [4:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=246) Training the Vision System and Data Collection
- [9:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=580) Gripper Design Challenges and Custom Solutions
- [15:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=915) Series B Funding and International Expansion
- [20:14](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=1214) COVID-19 Impact and Retrofitting Facilities
- [25:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=1500) Global Trade Restrictions and Commodity Quality
- [28:59](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=1739) Collaborative Robots vs. High-Speed Delta Robots
- [31:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=1881) Future Data Applications and Consumer Recycling
- [34:34](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=2074) Festo and Mag Switch GM Gripper Challenge
- [38:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=2283) Universal End Effector Design and Iteration
- [40:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2021-01-06-how-amp-robotics-is-changing-recycling-festo-wins-gm-gripper-challenge#t=2426) Rapid Prototyping and Industrial Deployment

## Topics

- [PCB design & layout](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pcb-design)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up, early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- AMP Robotics (company)
- Festo (company)
- Mag Switch (company)
- MassRobotics (company)
- GM (company)
- ABB (company)
- Waste Connections (company)
- Ursa Robotics (company)
- Delta robots (product)
- E30 magnetic gripper (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [When robots recycle with Matanya Horowitz of AMP Robotics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-07-06-when-robots-recycle-with-matanya-horowitz-of-amp-robotics) (How I Built This)
- [191 - Will AI help close the gaps in recycling? Apurba Pradhan from Everest Labs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2023-05-05-191-will-ai-help-close-the-gaps-in-recycling-apurba-pradhan-from-everest-labs) (People of Packaging)
- [Innovative Waste Recycling: AI and Robotics with Areeb Malik, Co-founder of Glacier](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2022-08-18-innovative-waste-recycling-ai-and-robotics-with-areeb-malik-co-founder-of-glacie) (Hardware to Save a Planet)
- [End-Of-Line Automation With Ai: Inside Rapid Robotics Revolution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2024-11-14-end-of-line-automation-with-ai-inside-rapid-robotics-revolution) (Over the Air)
- [Electronica 24: The Rise of AI-Powered Robotics at Fideltronik and Beyond](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2024-12-09-electronica-24-the-rise-of-ai-powered-robotics-at-fideltronik-and-beyond) (EMS@C-LEVEL)

## Citing this page

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