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Humanoid Robots could soon be building your next car, as Mercedes-Benz enters into a commercial agreement with Apptronik.
In a press release shared last Friday (Mar. 15) via the Apptronik website, the details of the partnership have been shared.
The German automaker will be trying out the robots at its factories and in the manufacturing process.
The duo is working on a pilot program, with Mercedes-Benz “exploring potential use cases for Apollo humanoid robots in logistics to bring parts to the production line for workers to assemble, the so-called delivery of assembly kits, while simultaneously inspecting the components.”
Apollo, the 5’8” and 160 lb general-purpose robot, is the brainchild of Texas-based company Apptronik.
They describe it as being the ‘first commercial humanoid robot that was designed for friendly interaction, mass manufacturability, high payloads, and safety.’
The co-founder and CEO of the company, Jeff Cardenas, says: “When we set out to build Apollo, an agreement like the one we’re announcing today with Mercedes-Benz was a dream scenario.
“Mercedes plans to use robotics and Apollo for automating some low-skill, physically challenging, manual labor – a model use case which we’ll see other organizations replicate in the months and years to come.”
Why Mercedes are turning to the robots
In the press release, Jörg Burzer who is in charge of the production, quality, and supply chain management division at the Mercedes-Benz Group refers to robotics being a new area to explore for the team.
“To build the most desirable cars we continually evolve the future of automotive production.”
“Advancements in robotics and AI open up new opportunities also for us. We are exploring new possibilities with the use of robotics to support our skilled workforce in manufacturing.
“This is a new frontier and we want to understand the potential both for robotics and automotive manufacturing to fill labor gaps in areas such as low skill, repetitive and physically demanding work and to free up our highly skilled team members on the line to build the world’s most desirable cars.”
Featured Image: AI-Generated by MidJourney
