Amazon has hired Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen and Rocky Duan, founders of robotics startup Covariant, along with about a quarter of the company’s staff. In addition, Amazon has signed a non-exclusive license agreement to use Covariant’s robot base model.
Covariant is a startup focused on developing robotic AI models, initially focusing on the use of robotic arms in warehouses. Joseph Quinlivan, vice president of logistics Technology and robotics at Amazon, said the partnership with Covariant will advance Amazon’s fundamental research in AI and robotics and embed these technologies into its existing robotics workforce to create greater practical value for customers.
The deal is similar to Amazon’s previous hiring of the founder of AI startup Adept, and shows Amazon’s strategy of acquiring new technologies through talent introduction and technology licensing. In the meantime, Covariant said it will continue to operate under the leadership of Ted Stinson and Tianhao Zhang.
Back in the last century, Kiva developed a way to move products around warehouses, letting squat robots lift shelves of inventory and deliver them to human pickers. Amazon’s army of mobile robots has grown from about 10,000 in 2013 to 750,000 in 2023, and the company’s massive scale of operations means it can deliver millions of items faster and cheaper than anyone else.
However, the physical grabbing of products is still a chore that is difficult to mechanize. Covariant has spent the past few years developing AI algorithms that have more general capabilities and can handle a range of items more reliably. This week’s deal will bring Covariant’s three founders, as well as several research scientists, to Amazon.
An Amazon spokesperson said Covariant’s model will be used to power some of the robotic operating systems in its delivery network. Yaro Tenzer, co-founder and CEO of RightHand Robotics, said startups like Covariant may find that when it comes to dealing with AI development, customization of each project, and long sales cycles in e-commerce deliveries, Providing cost-effective solutions is challenging.
Overall, Amazon’s deal with Covariant could result in fewer people being needed to process its products over the next decade, but the exact effect remains to be seen.