# Ghost Robotics: Innovating for Safety

- Show: [The Robot Report Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast)
- Published: 2026-02-20
- Length: 1h 10m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety
- Listen: https://soundcloud.com/robot-report-podcast/ghost-robotics-innovating-for

## Summary

Gavin Kenneally, CEO and co-founder of Ghost Robotics, discusses the company's journey from academic research at Penn to becoming a leader in rugged legged robotics for military and industrial use. He details the engineering challenges of achieving IP67 waterproofing, extending battery endurance to three hours, and designing a modular, field-repairable platform that prioritizes uptime over full autonomy. The conversation highlights the integration of a mobile manipulator arm, the pragmatic approach to human-in-the-loop manipulation, and the impact of global conflicts on the rapid adoption of unmanned systems.

## Chapters

- [0:10](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=10) Introduction and Podcast Housekeeping
- [0:51](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=51) News: Agility Robotics, Unitree, and Amazon Blue Jay
- [16:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=973) News: Diligent Robotics Moxie Discontinuation
- [24:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=1498) Introduction: Gavin Kenneally and Ghost Robotics
- [29:28](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=1768) Legged vs. Wheeled Robots and Customer Feedback
- [38:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=2298) Ruggedization: IP67, Endurance, and Modularity
- [45:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=2738) Mobile Manipulator Arm and Pragmatic Autonomy
- [57:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=3438) Actuator Design, Robustness, and Field Repair
- [1:04:47](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety#t=3887) Impact of Ukraine War and Future of Robotics

## Topics

- [Mechanical engineering](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/mechanical-engineering)
- [Robotics & autonomy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/robotics-and-autonomy)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Security & privacy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/security-and-privacy)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Ghost Robotics (company)
- Vision 60 (product)
- Minotaur (product)
- Boston Dynamics (company)
- Agility Robotics (company)
- Digit (product)
- Toyota (company)
- Unitree (company)
- G1 (product)
- Amazon (company)
- Blue Jay (product)
- Diligent Robotics (company)
- Moxie (product)
- Kobots (company)
- Aethon (company)
- Serve Robotics (company)
- General Robotics (company)
- Grid (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Episode 156: Rugged robots for dangerous missions - Gavin Kenneally](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2026-05-15-episode-156-rugged-robots-for-dangerous-missions-gavin-kenneally) (Robot Talk)
- [An Interview with Chris Osterwood](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2019-01-14-an-interview-with-chris-osterwood) (The Amp Hour)
- [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)
- [Episode 72: Smart mobile robots for industry - Rafael Lopez](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-02-09-episode-72-smart-mobile-robots-for-industry-rafael-lopez) (Robot Talk)
- [Episode Forty-Two: Thom Kirwan-Evans](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2023-03-24-episode-forty-two-thom-kirwan-evans) (Robot Talk)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2026-02-20-ghost-robotics-innovating-for-safety. 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 The Robot Report Podcast.