Ever wonder what happens when robotics experts gather in a secret location to share their cutting-edge work? In this special episode, I bring you live interviews from a stealth robotics event between Austin and San Antonio.

I talk with
- Kyle Morgenstein, PhD student at UT Austin working on making legged robots safe in human environments;
- David Venegas, Head of Operations at Durin, who's automating critical tasks in mining exploration; and
- Barrett Ames, co-founder of BotBuilt, whose robots are revolutionizing home construction.

You'll like this interview if you're interested in the future of robotics across different industries, from research to startups, and how automation is solving real-world problems in safety, mining, and construction.

TRANSCRIPT
- https://audrownashpodcast.com/posts/19-texas-secret/transcript

EPISODE LINKS
- March 8th event invite: https://lu.ma/vqi7e7xe?tk=CpLKNx
- Kyle Morgenstein's website: https://www.kylemorgenstein.com/
- Human Centered Robotics Lab: https://sites.utexas.edu/hcrl/
- Durin's website: https://www.durin.com/
- BotBuilt's website: https://www.botbuilt.com/

PODCAST LINKS
- Podcast Website: https://audrownashpodcast.com/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@audrow
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/audrow-nash-podcast/id1716486786
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/74jWpWiLwsasY2QHtDcl8I?si=6c92796bf9554162

TIMECODES
(0:00) Start
(1:21) Kyle: Legged Robot Safety
(3:55) Improving Robot Safety for Humans
(7:25) Humanoid Robots: Progress & Future
(10:39) Boston Dynamics vs. Unitree
(12:29) Reward Models for Safer Robots
(15:12) Foundation Models: Impact on Data & Timelines
(17:18) Teleoperation Efficiency
(19:25) Training Robots Using YouTube Data
(20:48) David: Mining Basics
(29:10) Automating Mining Tasks
(34:49) Access Challenges in Excavation
(36:58) Use of Simulation
(38:03) Barrett: Construction Robots
(41:42) Custom Home Focus
(43:07) Botbuilt’s Approach
(44:16) Botbuilt’s Data Sourcing
(49:48) Working With Robots
(50:09) Perception Stack
(52:21) Handling Lumber Challenges
(53:39) Margins vs. Pre-Fab Homes
(53:58) Transport Costs
(56:03) Botbuilt’s Lifecycle
(58:18) Outro

What Happens When Robotics Experts Gather in Secret?