Amazon Acquires Key Talent from AI Robotics Startup Covariant

Amazon has made a significant move in the AI robotics space by hiring the founders of Covariant, an AI robotics startup, along with about 25% of its workforce. The Covariant team, including founders Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen, and Rocky Duan, will bring their expertise in robotic AI to Amazon, particularly in enhancing warehouse operations. Additionally, Amazon has secured a non-exclusive license to Covariant's robotic foundation models, which are designed to optimize tasks such as bin picking in warehouses.

Peter Chen, one of Covariant's founders, previously described the company's mission as developing a "large language model for robot language," focusing on creating AI models that empower robotic arms to perform complex tasks. c, expressed excitement about integrating Covariant’s advanced AI technology into Amazon’s existing robotics fleet, stating it would enhance performance and provide substantial value to customers.

This strategic hire echoes a similar move by Amazon in June, when it onboarded the founders of AI startup Adept. These moves highlight Amazon's strategy of bolstering its AI capabilities through talent acquisition and licensing agreements without fully acquiring startups.

Covariant will continue its operations independently, led by Ted Stinson as CEO and Tianhao Zhang, remaining committed to deploying its AI technology across various industries, including apparel, health, beauty, grocery, and pharmaceuticals.