Scaling Robotics

Conversations with robotics leaders in software, operations, supply chain, and more about their lessons from scaling fleets of robots. For robots to make an impact on humanity, we must scale to millions worldwide. However, very few teams have ever scaled their fleets of robots, and knowledge of best practices and pitfalls is siloed into a few teams that have achieved this feat. Scaling Robotics is an effort to democratize this knowledge to empower robotics fleets to scale bigger and faster.

Scaling Robotics is a technology podcast hosted by Miru, with 13 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Miru hosts Scaling Robotics, a technology show with 13 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Scaling Robotics

  The Make-or-Break Function in Robotics | Matthew Leitch: Senior Director of Product Ops @ Pickle Robot | Scaling Robotics Episode 13

  Jul 13, 202633 min

  In Episode 13, we're joined by one of the most experienced operators in Physical AI for logistics, Matt Leitch, Director of Product Operations at Pickle Robot. Pickle builds green robots that reach into shipping containers and pull boxes off the stack and onto a conveyor. Matt's team has gotten a full deployment down to as little as six hours, from the robot hitting the dock to picking its first box. This job, container unloading, is one of the most grueling jobs in logistics. Warehouse workers endure extreme heat inside containers (well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit), heavy cargo, and high injury rates. We get into what he focuses on to keep the fleet humming: building product ops muscle, running a Robot Operations Center (ROC) that remotely commands the fleet, designing maintenance-ready hardware, and the change management it takes to make customers actually want the robots. Matt also shares a fun story about how a career that started as a helicopter pilot and "Battle Captain" in the US Military shaped the way he runs operations today. If you're building or scaling a robotics operations team, or you just want to know what it really takes to run robots in the real world, this one is for you!L𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒- Miru Blog (including episode transcripts): https://www.mirurobotics.com/blog- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1xr38bFEhk7MSf8UvmPUBo?si=761aeb03b4464fd1&nd=1&dlsi=fa48d636a0f74df6- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/scaling-robotics/id1857724488𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐒(00:00:04) – Introduction(00:01:01) – Background and Scale of Deployments(00:01:55) – What Is Product Operations?(00:04:12) – Handling Robot Failures and the Robot Operations Center(00:07:06) – Partnering with Customers and Training(00:08:39) – Matt's Military Background and Operations Philosophy(00:10:45) – Building Scalable Processes(00:11:58) – Lessons from Ocado and Six River Systems(00:13:42) – Scaling from Startup to Enterprise(00:15:16) – Designing for Maintenance(00:18:18) – In-House vs. Third-Party Technicians(00:20:30) – Preventative Maintenance(00:22:21) – Operating at Enterprise Scale(00:23:19) – Customer Perception and Change Management(00:27:04) – Hiring for Product Operations(00:28:56) – Key Metrics for Product Operations(00:30:19) – Why Robotics?(00:31:35) – Closing and Call to Action

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Scaling Robotics

  Building a Generational Manufacturing Company | Ed Mehr, Founder & CEO @ Machina Labs

  Jun 25, 202654 min

  In Episode 12, we speak with one of my favorite founders in robotics! Today, Edward Mehr, CEO and Founder of Machina Labs, joins us for Scaling Robotics.Machina builds RoboCraftsman, a 40-by-30-foot dual-arm robotic cell that forms sheet metal by pinching and incrementally deforming it, the way a potter shapes clay. The same cell drops its forming end effector to trim, scan, and soon heat treat and forge. They've deployed 19 robots and are working to scale this to many more, with factories being set up in the USA and the UAE.We discuss Machina's journey to get there: securing their first contracts with NASA and the Air Force, building a high-margin, semi-automated robotics business, and cultivating an engineering culture that continues to excel to this day. Ed also talks about his personal experiences that brought him to robotics and why he joined SpaceX as an early employee.If you're a robotics founder interested in how to build a team, fundraise, and create a great robotics business, this one is for you!L𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒- Miru Blog (including episode transcripts): https://www.mirurobotics.com/blog- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1xr38bFEhk7MSf8UvmPUBo?si=761aeb03b4464fd1&nd=1&dlsi=fa48d636a0f74df6- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/scaling-robotics/id1857724488𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐒(00:00:04) – Introduction(00:03:00) – The Problem Machina Solves (00:06:15) – Fleet Scale and Factory Buildout(00:07:51) – Ed's Origin Story(00:13:10) – Lessons from SpaceX Culture(00:16:15) – Early Customers and Going to Market(00:18:56) – Staying Lean and Building with Humans in the Loop(00:23:20) – Culture: What Not to Copy from SpaceX(00:27:18) – Scaling: From R&D Shop to Factory Operator(00:30:49) – Bridging Engineering and the Factory Floor(00:33:15) – Telling the Story: Fundraising and Vision(00:36:55) – The Strategic Thread for Machina(00:42:03) – Operational Excellence: Learning from Toyota and SendCutSend(00:45:24) – Staying Lean with Resources(00:48:13) – Lightning Round(00:51:00) – Why Manufacturing and Robotics(00:53:22) – How to Help Machina Labs

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Scaling Robotics

  Unpacking Finance for Robotics Startups| Daniel Kirstein: Robotics CFO, Founder @ Holdfast Partners, Formerly @ Farmwise, Voyage | Scaling Robotics Episode 11

  Jun 1, 202645 minS0

  <p>In Episode 11, we speak with Daniel Kirstein, co-founder of Holdfast Partners, a consultancy that helps robotics and hard tech companies build their financial and commercial infrastructure. Before Holdfast, Daniel was Head of Finance at Voyage (the autonomous vehicle company acquired by Cruise) and CFO at FarmWise, an agtech company building autonomous weeding machines, where he also ran sales, procurement, and HR. He spent time at Google and TikTok before leaving last year to work full-time with robotics founders. He writes the Robotics CFO newsletter on Substack.</p><p><br></p><p>Most robotics founders are technologists and don't have...

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Scaling Robotics

  Building World-Class Product in Robotics | Nick Akiona, Principal Engineer & Architect @ Aescape | Scaling Robotics Episode 9

  May 4, 202655 minS0

  <p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p>

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Scaling Robotics

  Field Ops is Criminally Underrated | Matthew Lee, Field Engineering @ Scythe Robotics + Aurora | Scaling Robotics Episode 10

  May 3, 202647 minS0

  <p>In Episode 10, we speak with Matthew Lee, who has spent the last decade running field operations and sustainment at three autonomy companies: Aurora (on-road autonomous trucks), Phantom Auto (teleoperated forklifts), and most recently Scythe Robotics (autonomous commercial lawnmowers, deployed across 20+ states). </p><p><br></p><p>Before robotics, he spent two decades in automotive repair, working his way up from technician to service manager.</p><p>I believe that field engineering is the most criminally underrated function in running and scaling a fleet of robots. Matthew has spent his whole career on that side of the problem, and has...

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on Scaling Robotics. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.