Amazon hits major robot milestone; launches new robotics AI model
Amazon has deployed its one millionth robot in its operations and is introducing a new generative AI robotics foundation model.
The online giant says it recently delivered its millionth corporate robot to a fulfillment center in Japan, joining a global network that now spans more than 300 facilities worldwide. Its farflung network of warehouses may soon have the same number of robots working as people, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In addition, Amazon is introducing a new generative AI foundation model it designed to make its entire fleet of robots smarter and more efficient. Called DeepFleet, this AI technology will coordinate the movement of robots across the Amazon fulfillment network.
According to Amazon, DeepFleet will improve the travel time of its robotic fleet by 10% and enabling us to deliver packages to customers faster and at lower costs. DeepFleet coordinates our robots' movements to optimize how they navigate fulfillment centers, with the goals of enabling less congestion, more efficient paths, and faster processing of customer orders.
[READ MORE: How Amazon achieved its fastest ever delivery speeds in 2024]
Amazon built DeepFleet using the company’s proprietary data sets of inventory movement within its sites and leveraging Amazon Web Services tools, including its Amazon SageMaker machine learning solution.
Amazon developed its first corporate robot in 2021. The company has been actively developing and deploying robots in its warehouses for years since then, including "Vulcan," a robot with a human-like sense of touch; as well as Agility Robotics' bipendal robot, Digit, which is built in a human-like shape and can move like a person while also grasping and handling items with robotic "arms" resembling a human.
The company is also reportedly experimenting with prototype humanoid robots provided by Chinese robotics firm Unitreethat. The robots would deliver packages from Amazon Rivian electric delivery vans to customer doors.
In addition, Amazon recently rolled out seven new robots that will help take on heavy lifting and repetitive tasks at a delivery station in Germany.
“This is just the beginning,” Scott Dresser, VP, Amazon Robotics, said in a corporate blog post. “As DeepFleet learns from more data, it will continue to get smarter—driving deeper efficiencies, unlocking more selection closer to customers, and reimagining what's possible in robotic logistics."
