Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Bipedal robot maker Agility names new CEO

Peggy Johnson to lead Oregon firm as it ramps up production to make hundreds of walking “Digit” robots in the first year

agility Screenshot 2024-03-04 at 1.38.23 PM.jpg

Agility Robotics, the Oregon firm which makes humanoid robots for warehouse tasks, today said it has named Peggy Johnson as its new CEO to lead the firm as it expands commercial deployments, broadens its product portfolio, and prepares to manufacture its product at scale.

According to Agility, its bipedal Mobile Manipulation Robot (MMR) called “Digit” comes as companies around the world are facing massive labor shortages and are unable to fill roles in logistics and manufacturing operations. The Digit platform is currently running in pilot programs with Amazon and GXO, the Corvallis, Oregon-based company says.


The firm is now planning to ramp up production at a 70,000-square-foot robot manufacturing facility in Salem, Oregon, called “RoboFab.” Agility anticipates production capacity of hundreds of Digit robots in the first year, with the capability to scale to more than 10,000 robots per year at this location. New RoboFabs can be built and ramped quickly and in a modular fashion to expand capacity, the firm said. 

Before joining Agility, Johnson most recently served as CEO of spatial computing company Magic Leap, following executive roles during six years at Microsoft and 24 years at Qualcomm. Agility’s co-founder, Damion Shelton, who has served as CEO since the company’s inception in 2015, will now transition to the role of president be an integral part of Johnson’s leadership team, the firm said.

 

 

 

Recent

More Stories

warehouse worker pulling cart

Cleo acquires DataTrans to speed procurement automation

Business software vendor Cleo has acquired DataTrans Solutions, a cloud-based procurement automation and EDI solutions provider, saying the move enhances Cleo’s supply chain orchestration with new procurement automation capabilities.

According to Chicago-based Cleo, the acquisition comes as companies increasingly look to digitalize their procurement processes, instead of relying on inefficient and expensive manual approaches.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

photo collage of warehouse tech

Supply chain pros are wary of inflation and labor woes

The top worries that supply chain leaders hope to address with new innovations this year include inflationary concerns (68%) and labor shortages (50%), according to a survey on innovation from the third-party logistics provider (3PL) Kenco.

And many of them will have a budget to do it, since 51% of supply chain professionals with existing innovation budgets saw an increase earmarked for 2025, suggesting an even greater emphasis on investing in new technologies to meet rising demand, Kenco said in its “2025 Supply Chain Innovation” survey.

Keep ReadingShow less
photos of white house and a loaded containership

Supply chain groups push back on Trump tariff plan

Industry groups across the spectrum of supply chain operations today are pushing back against the Trump Administration plan to apply steep tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, saying the additional fees are taxes that will undermine their profit margins, slow their economic investments, and raise prices for consumers.

Even as a last-minute deal today appeared to delay the tariff on Mexico, that deal is set to last only one month, and tariffs on the other two countries are still set to go into effect at midnight tonight.

Keep ReadingShow less
reagan national DCA airport photo

Reagan National airport plans to reopen today after deadly crash

All flights remained grounded this morning at Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport (DCA) following the deadly mid-air crash last night between a passenger jet and an Army helicopter.

In a statement, DCA airport officials said they would open the facility again today for flights after planes were grounded for more than 12 hours. “Reagan National airport will resume flight operations at 11:00am. All airport roads and terminals are open. Some flights have been delayed or cancelled, so passengers are encouraged to check with their airline for specific flight information,” the facility said in a social media post.

Keep ReadingShow less
wind turbine making electricity

GE Vernova to invest $600 million in U.S. manufacturing sites

GE Vernova today said it plans to invest nearly $600 million in its U.S. factories and facilities over the next two years to support its energy businesses, which make equipment for generating electricity through gas power, grid, nuclear, and onshore wind.

The company was created just nine months ago as a spin-off from its parent corporation, General Electric, with a mission to meet surging global electricity demands. That move created a company with some 18,000 workers across 50 states in the U.S., with 18 U.S. manufacturing facilities and its global headquarters located in Massachusetts. GE Vernova’s technology helps produce approximately 25% of the world’s energy and is currently deployed in more than 140 countries.

Keep ReadingShow less