Startup Profile: BotsAndUS

By Mirianna la Grasta | @mirilagrasta

BotsAndUs is a London-based startup working with data-driven robotics and artificial intelligence. It creates full-stack robot systems for public spaces. The company has been one of the tech startups helping airlines and airports to face the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, by developing a customer-assistance-focused robot for in-terminal passenger assistance.

About BotsAndUS

London-based BotsAndUS was founded in February 2015 by Romanian robotics engineers Adrian Negoita and Andrei Danescu, alongside with marketing and business development expert Oana Andreea Jinga. The startup wants to bring robotics and AI solutions to our day-to-day life. The products they develop combine human-centred design, social sciences and cutting-edge engineering to make sure robots integrate seamlessly into society.

Mission And Ethos

The company’s mission is to develop a series of autonomous-service robots, designed to work alongside people in their day-to-day activities. Each robot they create has customer service, analytics and operational efficiency at its heart, and is crafted with specific customer needs in mind. At the core of the startup’s ethos is the belief that humans and robots can collaborate to create a better life and more efficient businesses. They see robots and AI through a positive lens and maintain that that robotics can liberate society from repetitive work, leaving it free to focus on more important matters.

Bo

Currently very popular with airlines and airports, Bo is a fully-autonomous service robot that is able to interact with customers independently and deliver real-time insights and data to businesses. The product, which is 1.25m tall, and weighs 60 kilograms, is designed to help visitors and customers find their way to products, places and meeting rooms. It takes care of each customer personally in a helpful, polite and friendly manner and is able to independently detect and approach those customers who seem in need of, or interested in, assistance. It has been designed with human-like speaking and listening technologies and is able to communicate in different languages.

The robot is also able to move safely through space. It is equipped with several sensors that help it monitor its surroundings at a 360° radius and avoid collisions with objects, surfaces and people. Bo, which has an all-day battery life, docks automatically when its battery is low and is able to recharge in less than three hours. The product doesn’t only take care of customer service, but it also uses AI to understand and analyse its users and their demographics, helping companies to gather data and insights on their customers.