Many companies focus on building robots or building hardware components, helping them move, grip objects, or interact with the world around them. Based in Silicon Valley, OpenMind focuses on the underfoot.
OpenMind is building a software layer OM1 for humanoid robots that act as an operating system. The company compares it to Android in robotics because its software is open and hardware essential.
Jan Liphardt, professor Stanford, founder of OpenMind, told TechCrunch that humanoids and other robots can perform tasks repeatedly for decades. But now, you need a new operating system that thinks like a human, as humanoids are being developed for use cases that require more human-machine-machine interactions, such as having humanoids in your home.
“All of a sudden, this world opens up a place where machines can interact with humans in ways I’ve never seen before,” Riphart said. “We really think of ourselves as a company here, not just humans, but also machines and humans collaborations.”
OpenMind announced on Monday a new protocol called Fabric that allows robots to verify their identity and share information with other robots.
Unlike humans, machines can learn almost instantly, Riphart said. This means that by giving them a better way to connect to other robots, it will make it easier to train and absorb new information.
Liphardt showed examples of languages and how robots can connect with each other and share data on how they speak different languages.
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“We take it for granted that humans can interact with other humans on Earth,” Riphart said. “Humans can build a lot of infrastructure around us, trust others, make calls, text, interact and coordinate things, and machines are no exception.”
OpenMind was founded in 2024 and is preparing to ship the first fleet of 10 OM1-powered robotic dogs by September. Riphart said he has a great belief in bringing out the technique and repeating it after the fact.
“We fully expect all the humans who will host these quadrupeds.
The company recently raised a $20 million funding round led by Pantera Capital, attracting other strategic investors and Angel Investors with participation from Ribbit, Coinbase Ventures and Pebblebed.
Now, the company is starting to lead high-tech into people’s homes and repetitive products.
“The most important thing for us is to bring out the robots and get feedback,” Riphart said. “Our goal as a company is to test as many of these tests as possible, so we can very quickly identify the most interesting opportunities that today’s robotic capabilities will best match what humans are looking for.”
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