Amazon, a pioneer in leveraging machine learning models, has a long-standing commitment to innovation in supply chain, logistics, and warehouse automation. The company’s extensive use of AI technology and AWS infrastructure powers its vast fleet of industrial robots, which assists its employees in fulfilling billions of customer orders annually.
Amazon utilizes systems equipped with AI, like Robin, Proteus, and Sequoia, to understand the physical world and execute tasks safely and reliably alongside its operations teams. This constant evolution drives continuous improvement in how inventory moves within Amazon’s facilities and how robotics integrates with these processes. Their research looks at ways to build AI models that will make these automation systems even safer and more adaptable at scale, thus improving the efficiency of employees and the customer experience.
To advance innovation in this area, Amazon has announced a new commercial agreement with Covariant. This Bay Area-based company specializes in creating advanced AI models that enable robots to perceive, reason, and act on their environment, supporting various warehouse automation functions. Amazon has licensed Covariant’s robotic foundation models to contribute to the advancement of its own robotic platforms.
Covariant’s AI models will help improve the way Amazon’s robotic systems learn and adapt, further enhancing the safety of operations and benefiting customers. As part of this agreement, Amazon is also planning to expand its AI and robotics team in the Bay Area to attract top talent and advance the state of automation.
Several key members of the Covariant team, including Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen, and Rocky Duan, along with other research scientists and engineers, are joining Amazon’s Fulfillment Technologies & Robotics Team. Their expertise will be vital in integrating Covariant’s technology within Amazon’s operations and driving the development of innovative AI solutions.
Joseph Quinlivan, Vice President of Amazon Fulfillment Technologies & Robotics, expressed his excitement about incorporating Covariant’s technology: “We’re excited to welcome some of Covariant’s talented team to Amazon and look forward to building on this technology with them to deliver the next generation of robotics that will drive forward the state-of-the-art in automation. Imbedding Covariant’s AI technology into our existing robot fleet will make them more performant and create real world value for our customers.”
