Why Silicon Valleyis winning the robotics/AI race

History

People

“that every citizen shall retain the right to pursue any lawful employment and

enterprise of their choice” California Civil Code 1872

People

• Emigration rate from states with non-compete clauses is double that of states without

• The more patents someone has, the more likely they are to relocate

From Marx, Singh, Fleming “Regional Disadvantage? Employee non-compete agreements and brain drain”

Patents by US State

USA still holds most patents but…

Silicon Valley has critical mass of

People Ideas

Money= Innovation Potential

per square inch

Ideas

• Stanford• Berkeley• SRI International• Lawrence Livermore

National Laboratory• Sandia National

Laboratory• Lawrence Berkeley

National Laboratory

• UC San Francisco, Santa Cruz & Davis

• IBM Almaden Park• Xerox Parc• NASA• SSL Space Systems Lab• MBARI• And all the high tech

company R&D labs

Ideas

Applied Ideas

Money

• Pre VC investment was either corporate R&D or direct from wealthy individuals

• George Doriot kickstarted the VC industry after WW2 with ARD but it was a public entity

• Doriot “ideas are easy – execution is hard”• 2nd generation of VC firms allowed LPs or

partners to profit from investments

Money• 1911 Bessemer Ventures - $4B (Menlo Park/Boston)• 1961 Norwest - $6B (Palo Alto)• 1965 Greylock Partners - $2B (Cambridge/San Mateo)• 1968 Morgenthaler Ventures - $3B (Menlo Park)• 1969 Mayfield Fund - $2.4B (Menlo Park)• 1969 Venrock - $2.6B (Palo Alto)• 1970 Charles River Ventures - $2.1B (Menlo Park/Boston)• 1970 Fidelity Ventures - $1.6B (Boston)• 1971 Lightspeed Ventures - $2B (Menlo Park)• 1972 KPCB - $1.5B (Menlo Park)• 1972 Sequoia - $4B (Menlo Park)• 1976 Menlo Ventures - $4B (Menlo Park)• 1978 NEA - $17B (Menlo Park)• 1978 Oak Investments - $8.4B (Westport/Palo Alto)

Semiconductor Industry

Fairchildren

From Critical Mass To …

Lots of People +Lots of Ideas +Lots of Money

= Exponential Growth

Silicon Valley

The Bay Area hosts high concentrations of federal and private research labs driving radical breakthroughs in science and engineering; attracts nearly half of all venture capital invested in the United States; and has developed a diverse network of highly specialized business services that support the innovation economy. Bay Area Regional Economic Council 2015

INDUSTRIAL

• Adept• Modbots• Pneubotics• Grabit• SoftRobotics• Kuka• Carbon Robotics

LOGISTICS

• Fetch Robotics• Adept• 5D Robotics• Dispatch• Adept• Mobotech• Locus Robotics

SELF DRIVING

• Cruise• Tesla• Auro Robotics• Zoox• Google• Apple• Peloton• Otto

DRONES

• Liquid Robotics• OpenROV• 3D Robotics• Nixie Labs• Vantage Robotics• Skycatch• Airware• Drone Deploy

AGRICULTURE

• TerrAvion• Blue River Tech• Wall-ye• Rowbot• Abundant

HEALTH

• Catalia Health• Intuitive Surgical• Auris Technology• Medicaroid• Verb Surgical• Restoration

Robotics• EksoBionics• SuperFlex• Otherlab Orthotics

RETAIL

• RobotLab• Fellow Robots• Simbe• BossaNova Robotics• Savioke• Momentum

Machines• Dishcraft• Bistrobot

CONSUMER

• CleverPet• Nailbot• Anki• Orbotix• Neato• Revolve Robotics• Suitable

Technologies• Double Robotics

EDUCATION

• RobotLab• RoboTerra• Dash Robotics• Arcbotics• Modular Science• Magzor• Barobo• WonderWorkshop

Technology Tipping Points

• ROS• Cheaper Sensors/LIDAR• Cheaper Processing• Better Vision Systems• Better Navigation• Ubiquitous Internet• Smartphone/Tablet/BYOD

What’s coming next?

• Social Robots• Soft Robotics• Space Robotics• Micro Robotics• Nano Robotics

International Federation of Robotics

Industrial

• $3 B• 10%• 2010

Service

• $0.3 B• 100+%• 2025-30

Consumer

• $0.03 B• 1000+%• 2050

Investment in Robotics/AI

2009-2014

• $1 B• In 154

startups

2015

• $1 B• In 44

startups

2016

• $1 B• In just 1

startup

Crossing the Chasm

There are innovation methods…

Lean Startup Methodology

“Startup success can be engineered by following the process, which means it can be learned, which means it can be taught.”

Eric Ries

“No business plan survives first contact with customers…. So get outside of your building and start talking to customers.”

Steve Blank”

Why is Silicon Valley winning robotics?

• Technology Tipping Points• People• Ideas• Money• Lean Startup Methodology

Also known as Scientific Method

“Robotics isn’t a technology problem any more. It’s a business model problem.”

Rodney Brooks

Silicon Valley Robotics is the not-for-profit industry group supporting innovation and

commercialization of robotics technologies.

Andra Keay, Managing Directorandra@svrobo.org