Okay, maybe that headline is a little hyperbole.
That said, Bloomberg reports that Amazon’s newest big best is robots for the home.
According to the story, “The retail and cloud computing giant has embarked on an ambitious, top-secret plan to build a domestic robot, according to people familiar with the plans. Codenamed ‘Vesta,’ after the Roman goddess of the hearth, home and family, the project is overseen by Gregg Zehr, who runs Amazon’s Lab126 hardware research and development division based in Sunnyvale, California. Lab126 is responsible for Amazon devices such as the Echo speakers, Fire TV set-top-boxes, Fire tablets and the ill-fated Fire Phone.”
While Amazon has not commented on the project, Bloomberg writes that “people familiar with the project speculate that the Vesta robot could be a sort of mobile Alexa, accompanying customers in parts of their home where they don’t have Echo devices. Prototypes of the robots have advanced cameras and computer vision software and can navigate through homes like a self-driving car. Former Apple executive Max Paley is leading the work on computer vision. Amazon has also hired specialized mechanical engineers from the robotics industry.”
The story notes that Amazon has ramped up hiring for the division, but also points out that Amazon hardly is alone - companies ranging from Sony Corp. and LG Electronics are investing in the robotics business, with various visions for how it might be employed in the home and workplace.
That said, Bloomberg reports that Amazon’s newest big best is robots for the home.
According to the story, “The retail and cloud computing giant has embarked on an ambitious, top-secret plan to build a domestic robot, according to people familiar with the plans. Codenamed ‘Vesta,’ after the Roman goddess of the hearth, home and family, the project is overseen by Gregg Zehr, who runs Amazon’s Lab126 hardware research and development division based in Sunnyvale, California. Lab126 is responsible for Amazon devices such as the Echo speakers, Fire TV set-top-boxes, Fire tablets and the ill-fated Fire Phone.”
While Amazon has not commented on the project, Bloomberg writes that “people familiar with the project speculate that the Vesta robot could be a sort of mobile Alexa, accompanying customers in parts of their home where they don’t have Echo devices. Prototypes of the robots have advanced cameras and computer vision software and can navigate through homes like a self-driving car. Former Apple executive Max Paley is leading the work on computer vision. Amazon has also hired specialized mechanical engineers from the robotics industry.”
The story notes that Amazon has ramped up hiring for the division, but also points out that Amazon hardly is alone - companies ranging from Sony Corp. and LG Electronics are investing in the robotics business, with various visions for how it might be employed in the home and workplace.
- KC's View:
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This reminds me of two Jeff Bezos quotes…
• “If you know in advance that it’s going to work, it’s not an experiment.”
• “As the company grows, the size of the mistakes has to grow as well.”
