Automate 2025 recap by The Robot Report Podcast

In Episode 196 of The Robot Report Podcast, co-hosts Mike Oitzman and Eugene Demaitre review last week’s Automate event, which they both attended. The podcast features interviews with leadership at ABB and Teradyne Robotics, the parent company of Universal Robots and Mobile Industrial Robots.

Oitzman also names his pick of the most innovative robot at the trade show, presented by CeiliX.

We caught up with Carole Franklin, director of standards development, robotics, at Association for Advancing Automation (A3) to learn more about the new ISO/AWI 25785-1 humanoid safety standard. If you’d like to be a part of the committee, reach out directly to Carole.

Show timeline

1:20 – Mike and Gene review highlights of Automate 2025 in Detroit.
15:15 – Mike interviews Mathias Entenmann, co-founder and CEO of CeiliX.
22:20 – Interview with Ujjwal Kumar, group president for robotics at Teradyne.
53:15 – Interview with Marc Segura, president of ABB Robotics.
1:09:50 – Interview with Carole Franklin, director of standards development, robotics, at A3, on the ISO/AWI 25785-1 standard.

From left: Mike Oitzman, Marc Segura, and Gene Demaitre at the ABB booth at Automate 2025.

From left: Mike Oitzman, Ujjwal Kumar, and Gene Demaitre in the UR/MiR booth at Automate 2025.

Ceilix robot video

News of the week

Universal Robots releases the UR15, its fastest cobot yet

Universal Robots unveiled its fastest collaborative robot at Automate 2025. The UR15 has a maximum TCP (tool center point) speed of 5 m/s to reduce cycle times, increase productivity, and reduce costs across applications and industries.

For pick-and-place applications, the company said the UR15 delivers up to 30% cycle time improvements compared with other UR models. At the same time, it maintains the characteristics UR cobots are known for, such as a lightweight design and small footprint.

When combined with OptiMove, UR’s new motion control technology, the company said those gains go even further. OptiMove can enhance trajectory smoothness and ensure consistently accurate movements, even in high-speed and high-payload applications, UR claimed.

Realtime Robotics launches Resolver

Robot path planning is traditionally a complex, time-consuming, and brittle process, according to Realtime Robotics. At Automate last week, the company launched Resolver, a cloud-based motion-control system that can accelerate the design and deployment of robotic workcells.

Many workcells use multiple robots, and avoiding collisions during production processes often requires tedious manual labor to create interference zones and interlock signals. Manually validating the mechanical design, planning robot paths, determining sequencing to hit optimal cycle time targets, and defining those interlocks can take more than 100,000 hours for a single project.

Waymo recalls software on 1,200 robotaxis for safety

Waymo recalled 1,212 robotaxis to address risks of collisions with chains, gates, and other roadway barriers. The autonomous vehicle developer said it resolved the underlying software problem with a November 2024 update that reduced the likelihood of accidents. The recall does not impact its operations or any vehicles currently on the road, the company said.

U.S. auto safety investigators from the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened a probe into the issue last year. Waymo said that between 2022 and late 2024, its vehicles were involved in 16 collisions with chains, gates, and other barriers. None of these resulted in any injuries, according to the NHTSA.

The company operates over 1,500 vehicles on the roads in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin.

DHL is buying over 1,000 Stretch robots from Boston Dynamics

DHL Group, a global leader in logistics, is expanding its already strong relationship with Boston Dynamics. Through a memorandum of understanding (MOU), DHL plans to deploy more than 1,000 additional container-unloading robots from Boston Dynamics by 2030. The companies are also looking to expand the types of applications Stretch is used for.

DHL and Boston Dynamics have been working together since 2018. DHL first deployed Stretch in North America in 2023. The logistics giant has also deployed the robot in the U.K. and Europe, achieving unloading rates of up to 700 cases per hour.

Podcast sponsored by SDP/SI

Our sponsor this month is SDP/SI.

Let’s dive into the critical role of precision, quality, and alignment in robotics design and assembly.

SDP/SI said its engineering experts go beyond the standard manufacturing process by reviewing your designs before production, offering cost-effective, space-saving solutions that streamline your entire assembly process.

Discover how the company can help robotics companies achieve unprecedented accuracy and efficiency.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn how SDP/SI can elevate your robotics applications. Discover the difference!

Visit sdp-si.com/podcast/index.php

Now accepting session submissions!