Amazon eyes AI, self-driving cars and Asia as $1 billion innovation fund evolves

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Amazon has spent nearly two years investing an undisclosed portion of its $1 billion Industrial Innovation Fund in nearly a dozen U.S. and Israeli startups focused on logistics, supply chain, and customer fulfillment. . Amazon is now a bit more flexible, looking to expand geographically and move into areas such as generative AI that support its broader mission, said Franziska Bossert, the foundation’s new head. He told TechCrunch in an exclusive interview.

Established in April 2022, the Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund invests in startups that can help the e-commerce giant deliver goods faster while improving the experience not only for customers but also for warehouses and warehouse employees. I am still passionate about finding and investing in companies. Logistics department. The fund also leverages Amazon’s previous investments in AI and robotics to improve its operations, including adding robotic arms to perform repetitive tasks and automated vehicles to help transport large items. The purpose is also to build things. Our first investments in 2022 were: Five startups are developing robotics and wearable technology to improve safety in fulfillment centers.

The fund got off to a slow start, reportedly investing just $110 million in startups in its first year. With investments in Veo Robotics, computer vision company Flymingo, industrial wireless automation startup CoreTigo, Rightbot, and Instock, the pace appears to be accelerating from spring 2023 onwards. Bossert said the fund has also recently invested in privately held generative AI startups, but he said only that the company’s technology could have a strong impact on robotics.

“There was some momentum in the fund, especially at the end of the year,” she added.

Today, its scope has expanded both geographically and thematically. Bossert told TechCrunch that he sees potential in Europe and Asia and would like to see his portfolio, which is primarily comprised of early-stage companies, shift “a little bit” towards investing in later-stage startups. . The company also posted a blog on Wednesday outlining the fund’s evolution.

Bossart is also focused on three key areas: finding startups with technologies such as AI, the growing momentum of bipedal/humanoid robots, and self-driving cars to improve middle- and last-mile deliveries. doing.

Amazon’s interest in and use of AI is not new. But Bossert sees potential applications for generative AI in robotics and automation. Machine learning, a type of AI in which computer systems learn from data, is already used in robotics. Bossart is looking for startups using generative AI. Generative AI uses trained models to create new information and data that can be applied to perception, manipulation, and control to improve automation. In other words, generative AI allows you to fuse all the elements within robotics and automation to improve functionality.

And it’s an opportunity for startups, too, she noted. “The biggest challenge for many of these startups is accessing the large datasets used to train AI,” she said. “Amazon has one of the largest datasets in the world.”

Robotics has long been a key area of ​​interest for Amazon, which relies heavily on automation and robotics to meet its delivery goals. Bossert said companies developing humanoid robots are of particular interest, citing the fund’s investment in Agility Robotics, a Corvallis, Oregon startup best known for its bipedal robot called Digit. .

In October 2023, Amazon began testing Agility’s robotic system, Digit, at its BFI1 research and development facility outside Seattle. But Bossert said that even with Amazon’s relationship with Agility continuing, there is still room and interest to invest in other companies working on the technology.

“There is huge potential for mobile operations,” Bossert said, noting that the company is particularly interested in how bipedal robots can work with humans to improve safety. Ta. The company already has evidence showing how robots can reduce injuries. Data collected by Amazon shows that as of 2022, the Amazon robotics site had a 15% lower recordable accident rate and an 18% lower lost-time injury rate than non-robotic sites.

Bossert is also excited about middle- and last-mile solutions to get packages to customers faster. And that doesn’t just mean investing in startups developing self-driving car technology — although Bossary suggested that’s on the list. Bossart is also looking for startups that work on technology at all points in the supply chain. For example, she pointed out that there are small automation tools that can help unload packages more quickly.

And while the company is always keen to find startups with technology that can be used within the Amazon ecosystem, Bossert emphasized that the fund’s investments are not tied to commercialization.

“We’re experimental in nature,” Bossert says.

The Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund isn’t the only investment tool in the company’s repertoire. Amazon has a long history of identifying and supporting companies that develop new technologies, products, and services essential to our mission. In some cases, Amazon may acquire the company outright.

In 2020, Amazon launched a $2 billion climate change fund to invest in sustainable technologies and services that will help the company achieve its commitment to net-zero carbon in its operations by 2040. Amazon’s Climate Fund has invested in more than a dozen companies, including CarbonCure, CMC Machinery, Pacama, Redwood Materials, Resilient Power, Rivian, TurnTide Technologies, BETA Technologies, Ion Energy, ZeroAvia, and Infinium.