Canvas’ robot cart could change how factories work

We stopped by Andy Rubin’s Playground in Palo Alto to check out a new autonomous cart from Canvas Technologies. The startup aims to replace existing fixed and expensive factory infrastructure, like conveyor belts, with its lightweight and adaptable computer-vision-powered cart.

Taking advantage of complex sensor fusion, Canvas’ carts can work in tandem to create maps of dynamic and open environments. This cuts down on uncertainty and helps reduce the prep time needed to reroute the cart to move goods between new points.

The ability to handle dynamic environments is particularly important in the factory setting. A cart moving goods between two production lines on a chaotic floor cannot ever crash or suffer prolonged downtime and delays — there simply isn’t margin for error when money is on the line.

TheĀ Boulder, Colorado-based team is building carts for now, but someday they could expand to building other autonomous vehicles for the factory setting. The company has raised a seed round from Visionnaire Ventures, Morado Venture Partners, Heroic Ventures and AME Cloud Ventures. Check out our full coverage of the Canvas cart here.