BMW is currently developing and testing general-purpose robots that could soon enter its workforce.
The robots are being developed in partnership with a company called Figure, based in California.
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Figure is designing the bots for difficult, unsafe, or tedious tasks in the manufacturing process.
BMW and Figure claim that the humanoids will allow employees to focus on more important tasks.
In a press release, the companies say these robots will allow for “continuous improvement in production efficiency and safety.”
“Single-purpose robotics have saturated the commercial market for decades, but the potential of general-purpose robotics is completely untapped,” said Brett Adcock, Founder and CEO of Figure.
“Figure’s robots will enable companies to increase productivity, reduce costs, and create a safer and more consistent environment,” Adcock added.
“We look forward to working side-by-side with BMW Manufacturing to integrate AI and robotics into automotive production.”
In the first phase, Figure will identify use cases to apply the robots in automotive production.
The second phase comprises staged deployment at BMW’s manufacturing facility in South Carolina.
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Beyond these two phases, BMW Manufacturing and Figure plan to explore advanced technologies such as AI, robot control, manufacturing virtualization, and robot integration.
“The automotive industry, and with it the production of vehicles, is evolving rapidly,” said Dr. Robert Engelhorn, President and CEO of BMW Manufacturing.
“BMW Manufacturing is committed to integrating innovative technologies in our production systems to drive our future forward as an industry leader and innovator,” he added.
“The use of general-purpose robot solutions has the potential to make productivity more efficient, to support the growing demands of our consumers, and to enable our team to focus on the transformation ahead of us.”
Not everyone is a fan of this move by BMW, as some are concerned that robots will take over human jobs.
Michael Walsh from Nerdist said BMW’s bots look like a “sci-fi disaster come to life,” though didn’t expand much on why.
Still, BMW is hardly the first company, and certainly won’t be the last, to employ robots in the workplace.
Tesla’s Optimus bot is another prime example of the technology quickly coming around.
