ROBOTICS

A Tale of Two Automata

This week is a mixed bag for retail robots. While the U.S.’ largest retailer has a cautionary tale of over-automation, a British grocer is on a robot buying binge. 

When robots don’t hit their KPIs

Walmart has scrapped its partnership with Bossa Nova Robotics, the WSJ reports, in an about-face for a mega-retailer that’s hyped bots to the press and its shareholders.

In 2017, Walmart ordered 50 Bossa Nova autonomous bots, which roam aisles and scan shelves. The startup told me a year ago that its robots were in 350 Walmart superstores. In January, the retailer said it would put Bossa bots in 1,000 of its 4,700 U.S. locations. 

But then the pandemic struck and, counterintuitively, Walmart soured on the robots. Why? Online sales picked up -> more associates walked the aisles to fulfill e-commerce orders -> they also scanned shelves and checked inventory -> unemployed robots. 

• Walmart reportedly said the robots weren’t cost-effective or more efficient than associates. The company also worried about consumers’ reactions to shopping alongside robots. 
• Worth noting...Walmart is still rolling out new technology for e-commerce operations, which will mostly be out-of-sight for customers. 

Who’s bullish on the bots?

Ocado. The British supermarket, which bills itself as the world’s largest online-only grocery retailer, is on an acquisition spree out West. On Monday, Ocado announced it’s agreed to buy a pair of robot makers: 

• Kindred Systems, an SF-headquartered robotics firm, for $262 million
• Haddington Dynamics, a Vegas-based robotics firm, for $25 million

Ocado wants to expand the scope of automatable fulfillment operations. It’s targeting a relatively unsolved robotics task—picking and packing—which requires even more dexterity and perception capabilities with groceries. 

“We expect that over the next two to three years we can remove the majority of the requirement for people to pick in those warehouses,” Ocado CEO Tim Steiner said.

Big picture: Walmart may be scaling back deployment of in-store robots, but it’s still eyeing the technology for e-commerce use cases. Amazon, Ocado, and others are targeting new logistics and fulfillment applications as well. 

POLICY

CA Ballot Measure Breakdown

While the outcome of the U.S. presidential election is still unclear, we've got answers on for two tech-related ballot measures in California. 

Proposition 24 

A “yes” vote on this state statute meant a vote to beef up California’s data privacy laws. The statute would: 

• Allow consumers to instruct businesses against sharing their data 
• Remove the grace period allowing businesses to “fix violations before being penalized” 
• Launch the Privacy Protection Agency, a bureau to enforce the previously passed privacy bills 

Voters said yes: Prop 24 officially passed. It’ll make life more challenging for some tech startups—but it’s a big win for consumer data protection, allowing individuals more control over their information. 

Proposition 25 

A “no” vote on this bill meant a vote not to uphold SB 10, a contentious bill affecting detainees awaiting trial. That bill would: 

• Replace cash bail with a controversial crime prediction algorithm 
• Assign defendants “risk” scores to predict likelihood of re-arrest or failing to show up for trial 

Looks like a no: As of send time, it looks like the nays have it. Proponents viewed the bill as a “scientific solution to the racism and classism of money bail,” reports VICE. But the proposed tech would have had largely unrivaled power over individuals’ lives, and algorithms are often powerfully flawed—with the same biases as humans.  

Addendum: Proposition 22—the most expensive initiative in California history—passed. It defines rideshare and delivery drivers as independent contractors, meaning companies like Uber and Lyft will be absolved from providing them benefits reserved for employees. 

SPONSORED BY VOICE

Out With the Bots, In With the Bonafide Beings

We’re saying buh-bye to the buh-bad bots on social media, and hello to interactions with real human beings on Voice.

Voice is building a safe space for human interaction—which is something we could all use right now. 

No more worrying about fake accounts, catfish, and shady algorithms. Sign up today if you’re Not A Bot™.

AI

Lost in Space

The world’s first organized space junk cleanup, bankrolled by the European Space Agency and powered by AI, is on track for a 2025 launch. The mission was dubbed ClearSpace-1, after the Swiss startup that has been developing the tech since last December. 

The target: a ~220-pound piece of a Vega rocket called Vespa, which has been careening around Earth’s atmosphere since Macklemore first topped the charts. 

The game plan: ClearSpace is building a spacecraft outfitted with four robotic arms. After an AI-powered camera locates the chunk of junk, the arms will drag it into the atmosphere and burn it up. 

The issue: No one’s seen Vespa in seven years, making it tougher for ClearSpace’s deep learning algos to recognize. They’ll be trained on synthetic images and taught to estimate its new position in space. 

In the space junkyard, there’s an estimated 3,000 dead satellites and 34,000 pieces of significantly sized debris. If the ClearSpace-1 cleanup is successful, it’ll pave the way for more AI-powered, debris-removal missions—meaning a safer space for satellites, spacecraft, and anything else we put into orbit. 

BITS & BYTES

Stat: Just 51% of Facebook employees believe the company has a positive impact on the world, according to BuzzFeed News reporting on an internal FB survey. That’s down 23 percentage points from May. 

Quote: “We shouldn’t use the way to manage a train station to regulate an airport...We cannot regulate the future with yesterday’s means.“—Alibaba founder Jack Ma at a conference last month, which irked regulators and may have thrown a wrench in Ant’s IPO plans (see below). 

Listen: Ryan went on the Future of Mobility podcast and talked about this newsletter, transportation trends, Regina George, and tech companies moving into the auto market. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Google Podcasts.

SPONSORED BY AUTONOMOUS SMART DESK

This standing desk deserves a standing ovation. The SmartDesk 4 by Autonomous doesn’t just elevate to a standing position, it elevates your productivity levels with an integrated app that helps you build better work habits. And from Nov. 4 - 5 only, they’re letting Brew readers in on their exclusive pre-order event. Use code MORNINGBREW40 for a discount of $240 plus a chance to win a FREE upgrade of $250—but only when you pre-order here.

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• Ant Group’s IPO was halted suddenly after Chinese regulators summoned Jack Ma. 
• Spotify is testing a new feature that would let artists/labels promote tracks in recommendation systems and receive a lower royalty rate. 
• Aeva, a Porsche-backed lidar maker started by two Apple vets, will go public via SPAC at a valuation of $2.1 billion. To quote DJ Khaled: “Another one.” 
• Microsoft and Sony are bracing for extended shortages of their next-gen consoles. 
• Contact tracing issues: The UK NHS app had the wrong risk threshold and notified a “shockingly low” number of users about potential exposure, sources tell Sky News.
• Bitcoin finished October +28.2% for the month and +92.6% year-to-date. 

TRIVIA

We’re actually taking today’s trivia off. Your brain could probably use the rest—it’s been such a long month these last 48 hours. 

TECH THINGAMABOBS

For beta testing: Drivers with access to Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” software update recorded real-time reactions and posted them on YouTube. 

For AI $$$: CB Insights used its own data to determine the world’s 10 most valuable private AI companies. (Spoiler alert: At $140 billion, ByteDance won top billing.) View the infographic here.

ICYMI

Catch up on the top Emerging Tech Brew stories from the past few editions: 

• A dangerous “deepfake ecosystem” 
• Search tech: Apple vs. Google
• China’s new five-year plan