[Media report] Former Tesla Optimus AI lead Kumar founded Intelligent Machines to develop non-humanoid robots Summary: Two people familiar with t…
Read more
🟡 [Media report] Former Tesla Optimus AI lead Kumar founded Intelligent Machines to develop non-humanoid robots
Summary: Two people familiar with the matter said that Ashish Kumar, former AI lead for Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot, co-founded the San Francisco-based startup Intelligent Machines to develop non-humanoid robots, and is currently raising a seed round.
Content summary:
Two people with direct knowledge said that the startup co-founded by Kumar is named Intelligent Machines and is located in San Francisco.
The company develops non-humanoid robots that can take on work in manufacturing, aerospace, and other industries that previously required highly skilled technical workers.
The company has recruited several former members of Tesla's Optimus team and is currently raising a seed round, with the funding amount expected to reach about $100 million.
At this stage the focus is on robot software development, and management is also exploring developing its own hardware.
Two people familiar with the matter said that the company uses reinforcement learning technology to train robots, teaching robots to perform complex tasks by giving rewards for achieving goals and imposing penalties for incorrect actions; Kumar's doctoral research direction at UC Berkeley was precisely reinforcement learning.