Latest news with #AaronParness
The Star
11-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Amazon unveils robot with 'a sense of touch'
This robot, equipped with special cameras and sensors, is to be used more and more frequently in Amazon locations in the future. The so-called Vulcan robot is designed to relieve employees of work and make their jobs easier, as they will then have to stretch and bend less. — Photo: Wolf von Dewitz/dpa WASHINGTON: Amazon has unveiled its first robot, which it says has a sense of touch that it calls a "fundamental leap forward in robotics," aimed at an international audience. Called Project Vulcan, the new robot has "force feedback sensors" on the end of an arm and grabbing tool, which make it able to understand how much force it is applying to a push or grab, and can control that force to manipulate and clutch items without causing damage. Amazon said Vulcan would join its array of robots already used in its warehouses and fulfilment centres to pick up and move items, but said Vulcan was now able to handle around three quarters of the millions of products the e-commerce giant offers, and can move stock at a speed comparable to human workers. Aaron Parness, Amazon's Director of Robotics AI, said: "Vulcan works alongside our employees, and the combination is better than either on their own. "Vulcan represents a fundamental leap forward in robotics. "It's not just seeing the world, it's feeling it, enabling capabilities that were impossible for robots until now." The US firm said the development of the new type of robot was sparked by a desire to free up time for human staff, as well as improve safety and efficiency in its fulfilment centres. And in response to concerns about robots replacing humans in the workplace, Amazon said its range of robots have created "hundreds" of new categories of jobs at the firm, including maintenance engineers and monitoring staff for its robotic fleet. Amazon said it also offers training schemes to help staff move into robotics and other fields. Vulcan is expected to be rolled out to sites throughout Europe and the United States over the next "couple of years." Parness said it was "a technology that three years ago seemed impossible but is now set to help transform our operations." "Our vision is to scale this technology across our network, enhancing operational efficiency, improving workplace safety, and supporting our employees by reducing physically demanding tasks," he said. – PA Media/dpa
Business Mayor
11-05-2025
- Business
- Business Mayor
Amazon makes ‘fundamental leap forward in robotics' with device having sense of touch
Amazon said it has made a 'fundamental leap forward in robotics' after developing a robot with a sense of touch that will be capable of grabbing about three-quarters of the items in its vast warehouses. Vulcan – which launches at the US firm's 'Delivering the Future' event in Dortmund, Germany, on Wednesday and is to be deployed around the world in the next few years – is designed to help humans sort items for storage and then prepare them for delivery as the latest in a suite of robots which have an ever-growing role in the online retailer's extensive operation. Aaron Parness, Amazon's director of robotics, described Vulcan as a 'fundamental leap forward in robotics. It's not just seeing the world, it's feeling it, enabling capabilities that were impossible for Amazon robots until now.' The robots will be able to identify objects by touch using AI to work out what they can and can't handle and figuring out how best to pick them up. They will work alongside humans who now stash and retrieve items from shelving units which are manoeuvred to them at picking stations by wheeled robots – of which Amazon now has more than 750,000 in operation. Vulcan will be able to stow items on the upper and lower levels of the shelving units – known as pods – so that humans no longer need to use ladders or bend so often during their work. Robots now operating in Amazon's warehouse are able to shift items around or pick items using suction cups and computer vision. Read More Our digital addiction is costing the planet dearly | Letters The development is likely to raise fears of job losses as retailers reduce human involvement in distribution centres, which employ thousands of people. Many retailers have said that they are increasing investment in automation as labour costs rise around the world. Amazon has faced industrial action in the UK and elsewhere over low pay in its warehouses. Economists at Goldman Sachs speculated in 2023 that 300m jobs worldwide could be automated out of existence by 2030 as a result of the development of generative AI, with many more roles radically transformed. In the UK, between 60,000 and 275,000 jobs could be displaced every year over a couple of decades at the peak of the disruption, estimates from the Tony Blair Institute suggested last year. However, Tye Brady, the chief technologist of robotics at Amazon, said robots could not completely replace humans in the group's warehouses and were there to 'amplify the human potential' and to improve safety in the workplace. The self-confessed 'Star Wars geek' said the robots he helps design could be likened to R2D2 as 'an amazing collaborative robot'. 'People will always be part of the equation,' he said, while machines will take on 'the menial, the mundane and the repetitive' tasks. 'There's no such thing as completely automated. It just doesn't exist, because you always need people to understand the value of the operation, just using common sense, like, is that really doing the job?' He said having people involved could help protect against potential hacks of the system – as retailers increase efforts to protect themselves after the shutdown of Marks & Spencer's online orders following a cyber-attack. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion 'All hacking could possibly be detected by a machine, but they're usually detected by people, so having people be part of the equation is a good thing,' Brady said. He added that humans are also best for spotting more prosaic problems, such as broken or spilt items in a delivery that could cause problems for the system. Brady says that AI is helping to develop robots that can navigate complex spaces autonomously and learn to move safely alongside people and other objects. He said the latest generation of robots were able to 'ask for help' so that they could learn new ways of doing things. 'It's really exciting to bring both the mind and the body together,' he said. 'It's finally here, and it's just beginning.' For example, Amazon plans to install technology, which uses machine-learning and automation to create bespoke packaging that will cut waste. More than 70 of the machines will be installed in Germany, UK, France, Italy and Spain by the end of this year, with dozens more to follow by 2027. The announcement comes as Amazon this week launched its low-cost Amazon Haul site in the UK, which promises thousands of products for £20 or less, as the group takes on cut-price operators Shein and Temu.
Express Tribune
08-05-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Amazon unveils 'Vulcan' robot with sense of touch
Listen to article Amazon has unveiled a new robot named Vulcan that it says marks a 'fundamental leap forward in robotics,' as it introduces machines with a human-like sense of touch into its warehouse operations. The AI-powered robot is capable of identifying and handling about 75% of items in Amazon's vast fulfilment centres, using both vision and tactile feedback to sort and store products. Vulcan was introduced at Amazon's Delivering the Future event in Dortmund on Wednesday and is expected to roll out globally over the coming years. Aaron Parness, Amazon's director of robotics, said Vulcan is the first in its fleet to 'feel' as well as see. 'It's not just seeing the world, it's feeling it, enabling capabilities that were impossible for Amazon robots until now,' he said. The robot is designed to ease physical strain for human workers by reaching items on upper and lower shelving units, eliminating the need for ladders or excessive bending. It will operate alongside Amazon's existing fleet of more than 750,000 robots that already move shelves and assist at picking stations. The development has raised questions about job security. As labour costs rise, many global retailers are increasing investment in automation. Amazon has faced repeated industrial action in the UK and elsewhere over pay and working conditions in its warehouses. Economists at Goldman Sachs warned in 2023 that 300 million jobs worldwide could be lost to automation by 2030. The Tony Blair Institute estimated that in the UK alone, up to 275,000 jobs could be displaced annually at the height of the disruption. Still, Amazon's chief robotics technologist, Tye Brady, insists humans remain essential. 'There's no such thing as completely automated,' he said. 'People will always be part of the equation.' Brady likened Vulcan to Star Wars character R2D2 — a helpful companion, not a replacement. He said humans are key not just for nuanced decision-making, but also for spotting routine issues like broken or spilt items, and for responding to potential cyber threats. Amazon also plans to deploy machine-learning systems to create custom-fit packaging to reduce waste, with over 70 machines to be installed across Germany, the UK, France, Italy and Spain by year's end, and more by 2027. The news comes as Amazon launched its Amazon Haul site in the UK this week, targeting budget-conscious consumers with thousands of products under £20 — directly challenging low-cost rivals Shein and Temu.
India Today
08-05-2025
- Business
- India Today
Amazon creates robots that have a sense of touch to make them more useful for warehouse work
Amazon has recently unveiled its latest innovation -- Vulcan, a robot that has a sense of touch. The company has designed these robots aiming to help in warehouse work. Amazon states, "Today at our Delivering the Future event in Dortmund, Germany, we're introducing a robot that is neither numb nor dumb. Built on key advances in robotics, engineering, and physical AI, Vulcan is our first robot with a sense of touch." This new AI-powered warehouse robot is capable of picking and storing around 75 per cent of the items typically found in the company's storage facilities — a job that was once mainly carried out by human staff. Aaron Parness, Amazon's director of applied science, in a press release, states, "Vulcan represents a fundamental leap forward in robotics." He adds 'It's not just seeing the world, it's feeling it, enabling capabilities that were impossible for Amazon robots until now.' Amazon launches Vulcan: How does it work Amazon has unveiled Vulcan, its most advanced warehouse robot to date — one that's not only able to pick up items, but also handle them with a level of precision and sensitivity not seen in its previous machines. While Amazon has had robots capable of grasping goods before, Vulcan is the first to successfully navigate and organise items within the company's soft, fabric-lined storage compartments. These storage pods are already transported around the warehouse by a separate fleet of robots. Vulcan operates using a pair of robotic arms — one is designed to move items within a compartment using what Amazon describes as a mechanism resembling 'a ruler stuck onto a hair straightener.' This arm is fitted with force sensors that let the robot detect when it touches an object and adjust its speed and pressure to avoid damage. The second arm features a suction cup, enabling Vulcan to extract products from the pods. It also uses an AI-driven camera to ensure it hasn't accidentally picked up multiple items at once. The company has emphasised that AI is deeply embedded in Vulcan's operations. It's been trained using real-world data, including touch and force inputs, and is built to learn from its mistakes. By studying how objects react to touch, Vulcan refines its movements, which Amazon believes will make it more effective over time. Is Vulcan here to take away human jobs? Already in service at fulfilment centres in Spokane, Washington and Hamburg, Germany, Vulcan has processed over half a million orders. It's primarily tasked with retrieving items located at the top and bottom of the company's eight-foot storage units — a job that would normally require human workers to bend or climb, which Amazon claims helps reduce workplace injuries. Parness has also addressed the concern, kind of, if Vulcan is here to take over human jobs? He says, 'Vulcan works alongside our employees, and the combination is better than either on their own.' The press release stated, "We did all this work to improve not just efficiency, but worker safety and ergonomics." Vulcan's deployment is simply the newest example of how Amazon approaches the use of advanced technology in the workplace. Over the past 12 years, the company has introduced more than 7,50,000 robots into its fulfilment centres — all aimed at helping its employees to work more safely and efficiently, by handling the more physically demanding aspects of the job.
Business Insider
07-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Amazon says its new warehouse robot can work 20-hour shifts and 'feel' items
Amazon warehouse workers' newest high-tech colleague has a sensitive side. The e-commerce giant's latest robot, named Vulcan, is its first system that can sense touch, enabling it to handle a wider selection of oddly shaped items than older models. "In the past, when industrial robots have unexpected contact, they either emergency stop or smash through that contact," Amazon director of applied science Aaron Parness said in a statement. Vulcan's arm uses force-feedback sensors that allow the robot to detect how much pressure it can apply without damaging an object, and Amazon says the tech enables the robot to pick and stow three quarters of the kinds of products that are kept at a typical fulfillment center. The tech is currently in use at centers in Spokane, Washington, and Hamburg, Germany. Amazon plans to deploy more units across the US and Europe aver the next few years. Apart from its ability to work 20-hour shifts, Amazon also says the Vulcan robot complements human workers by helping reach items from high bins without a step-ladder, and low bins that would require crouching. That frees up workers to focus their efforts on objects stored in mid-height bins, which the company calls their "power zone." "Vulcan works alongside our employees, and the combination is better than either on their own," Parness said. Parness also told CNBC that Amazon fulfillment centers will still need human workers, especially for higher-tech roles that involve installing and maintaining the expanding robot fleet. "I don't believe in 100% automation," he told the outlet. "If we had to get Vulcan to do 100% of the stows and picks, it would never happen. You would wait your entire life. Amazon understands this."
