Robotics is having an AI boom, but don’t expect it to have a ChatGPT moment.

In this episode of Build Mode, host Isabelle Johannesen sits down with Xavier Chi, co-founder of Mbodi, a startup building AI software that lets people teach industrial robots new skills using natural language.

Xavier first joined Isabelle on the Startup Battlefield stage, where Mbodi became a crowd favorite with a live robot demo. Now, he’s back to talk about what happened after Battlefield and why he believes this generation of AI could finally help robotics companies overcome some of the problems that have historically made them so difficult to scale.

Xavier breaks down why traditional industrial automation still requires so much programming and customization, how Mbodi is working with ABB Robotics to bring its software into factories and warehouses, and why deploying robotics in the physical world creates a very different set of challenges from building traditional software. He also explains why robotics startups have struggled to build scalable software businesses and how generative AI could begin to change that.

They also get into what VCs are looking for in robotics startups, how founders can de-risk an investment before fundraising, whether the excitement around humanoid robots is justified, and why Xavier believes robotics won’t experience a single ChatGPT-like breakthrough. Plus, he explains why reliability is so critical on the factory floor — and how Mbodi recently achieved a 99.6% success rate during an eight-hour test.

Chapters:
00:00 — Mbodi’s unforgettable Startup Battlefield demo
01:32 — Why industrial automation is still so difficult
03:55 — What companies are actually using robots for
06:33 — How Mbodi landed its partnership with ABB Robotics
08:30 — Are startup competitions worth a founder’s time?
10:00 — Why Xavier wanted to compete in Startup Battlefield
11:18 — The hardest question Mbodi faced at Battlefield
13:04 — Why robotics software has struggled to scale
16:35 — Raising venture capital for a robotics startup
18:02 — Convincing VCs you’re the right team
19:12 — Do robots really need to look human?
21:42 — What needs to improve across the robotics stack
25:08 — What VCs want from robotics startups
28:00 — How to de-risk a robotics investment
30:06 — What’s next for Mbodi
31:30 — When will robots enter our homes?
35:35 — Why robots can’t afford to fail
36:01 — Mbodi’s 99.6% reliability test

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