Jason Walker returns to discuss the philosophical and practical dilemmas of robotics, automation, and the labor shortage.
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Audience Note: Shortly after filming this interview with Jason, Waypoint Robotics was acquired by Locus Robotics; and Jason Walker is now leading Locus' efforts to develop new market opportunities following the sale. Feel free to
read more about the acquisition on the Locus Robotics website.
Danny:
- Hello and thank you for joining me today on the IndustrialSage Executive Series. I am joined today by Jason Walker who is the CEO and co-founder of
Waypoint Robotics. Jason, thank you so much for joining me today.
Jason:
- Yeah, great to be here. Thanks for having me.
Danny:
- Well I'm excited to chat with you again. I know we spoke, I don't know, probably two years ago maybe under our—
we've spoken many times at ProMat and then at MODEX. This is what,
2019,
2020, maybe even in
2018 as well. I can't remember. So it's been a minute. And then
you've been on the show as well, but under the sales and marketing banner. But we've never had you on the Executive Series, so I'm excited to ask you some questions we've never asked before. So this will be fun and exciting.
Jason:
- I'm looking forward to it. I did zero preparation, so I always do best in such.
Danny:
- Perfect. No, we like that, honestly because you get real answers. I don't want scripted, canned stuff. Yeah, we want the real deal. So we're just having a conversation. For those who are unfamiliar with Waypoint, tell me a little bit about, what do you guys do?
Jason:
- We make autonomous mobile robots primarily for manufacturers, so small to mid-size enterprise which is, in the USA, about 90% of the economy. And the thing that's—well there's a bunch of unique things about Waypoint robots. But the thing that I think is the most interesting, overarching, unique thing is that we have intensely focused on ease of use. Our vision is that we can ship a robot to a customer, and the shipping and receiving clerk who unpacks that box can be the person who sets it up and gets it going and uses it on a day-to-day basis without any training. Kind of like when you buy an iPhone, it doesn't come with an instruction book. It's just so intuitive to set up that it guides you through it. That's our vision, and that's what we shoot for, and it's what guides us through our process. That is something that I think is a big differentiator because of the accessibility it creates.
Danny:
- Yeah, absolutely. You're definitely seeing—AMRs are huge right now, obviously. Moving into automation is a really big piece. And we're going to talk a little bit more about that, but before we get there, what I want to do, this is the part of the show where I like to learn more about my guests. I want to learn more about Jason. So tell me, how did you start your career? Obviously CEO and co-founder of Waypoint Robotics, but take me back.
