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Automated with Brian Heater

Automated with Brian Heater

De : Brian Heater
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Get a direct line to the biggest names and brightest minds in robotics, AI, and automation. Automated with Brian Heater brings you long-form conversations and unfiltered insights into how we got here, where we’re going, and what’s behind the technologies impacting how we live and work.


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  • Aya Durbin on Turning Atlas Into a Real Industrial Robot
    Jun 17 2026

    Humanoid robots are everywhere in the headlines.


    But Aya Durbin says the real test is not whether a robot can impress people in a demo. It is whether that robot can deliver real value, positive ROI, and reliable performance inside industrial environments.


    In this episode of Automated, Brian Heater speaks with Aya Durbin, Director of Product for Atlas at Boston Dynamics, about what it will actually take to bring humanoid robots out of the lab and into the workforce.


    Aya explains why she considers herself both a dreamer and a pragmatist. Boston Dynamics has shown what is possible with legged robots, viral demos, and advanced mobility, but productizing Atlas means focusing on customer value, uptime, deployment, serviceability, and hard industrial work.


    The conversation explores why Atlas has legs, what Boston Dynamics learned from Spot and Stretch, and why the first meaningful humanoid deployments will likely happen in structured industrial environments before anything broader.


    Brian and Aya also dig into the reality behind Boston Dynamics’ famous robot videos. The backflips, gymnastics, and playful demos may look like fun, but Aya explains how many of those moments are tied to the same core technology used to train robots for real tasks.


    They also discuss why Atlas is being built around AI-based tools rather than hard-coded applications, how early customers will help shape the roadmap, and why integration, IT, security, downtime, and ROI are just as important as the robot itself.


    Finally, Aya outlines Boston Dynamics’ current timeline for Atlas, including customer pilots planned for 2028 and Hyundai’s commitment to building 30,000 Atlas robots a year starting in 2030.


    This is a grounded look at what humanoid robotics looks like beyond the hype, and what has to happen before Atlas becomes a trusted member of the industrial workforce.


    Connect with Aya Durbin

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexa-durbin


    Learn more about Boston Dynamics Atlas

    https://bostondynamics.com/products/atlas/


    Thanks for being an Automated fan! Enter our giveaway to win robot-building sets from some of our favorite robotics companies and exclusive Automated swag.


    We’d love to hear from you. Have thoughts or guest suggestions?

    Reach us at podcast@automate.org

    You can find the transcript and more episodes of Automated at automated.fm


    Unlock full access to Automated and explore everything automation.

    Subscribe today and leave a review on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify

    https://www.youtube.com/@automatedpodcast

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/automated-with-brian-heater/id1837762221

    https://open.spotify.com/show/60olq6brlBEIJWggx2fMR6


    You can also find us on:

    LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/automated-podcast-by-a3/

    Instagram https://www.instagram.com/automatedpod/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    47 min
  • Andrew Barry on Why Dexterity Is the Next Breakthrough in Physical AI
    Jun 10 2026
    Physical AI is moving quickly.But Andrew Barry says one of the biggest unlocks in robotics is not just getting robots to move through the world. It is getting them to touch, grasp, adjust, and manipulate the world with real dexterity.In this episode of Automated, Brian Heater speaks with Andrew Barry, co-founder and CTO of Generalist, about how the company is building general intelligence for the physical world and why dexterous robots may be the starting point for far more capable automation.Andrew explains why Generalist is focused on the tasks that are both difficult and valuable. Robots have made major progress in mobility, but their ability to manipulate objects is still limited. If robots can solve dexterity, they can become useful in a much wider range of real-world environments.The conversation explores how Generalist is collecting massive amounts of real-world manipulation data. Andrew describes the handheld data capture devices the company built, why they chose that approach over teleoperation, and how thousands of devices have helped them scale a much richer data set for robot learning.Brian and Andrew also discuss the commercial side of physical AI. Andrew explains why the company is not just chasing impressive demos, but benchmarking against real tasks people are already paying for today. That distinction matters because a viral robot demo is not the same thing as a deployable robotic system.They also dig into one of the most surprising parts of modern robot learning: improvisation. Andrew shares the moment when a robot picked up a baggie with the opposite hand from the one it had been trained on, completed the task anyway, and left the team realizing something very different was happening inside the model.The episode also covers Generalist’s GEN-1 model, the parallels between robotics and the early GPT era, why flexible objects like cables are so difficult to automate, what data flywheels may actually look like in robotics, and why robots sometimes learn human mistakes from the data they are trained on.Finally, Andrew reflects on his path from Boston Dynamics to the Broad Institute and then to Generalist, explaining how work in molecular biology, machine learning, transformers, and robotics all shaped the way he thinks about building intelligence for the physical world.Connect with Andrew Barryhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-barryLearn more about Generalisthttps://generalistai.com/We’d love to hear from you.Have thoughts or guest suggestions?Reach us at podcast@automate.orgYou can find the transcript and more episodes of Automated at automated.fm.Unlock full access to Automated and explore everything automation.Subscribe today and leave a review on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.https://www.youtube.com/@automatedpodcasthttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/automated-with-brian-heater/id1837762221https://open.spotify.com/show/60olq6brlBEIJWggx2fMR6You can also find us on:LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/automated-podcast-by-a3/Instagram https://www.instagram.com/automatedpod/Subscribe to the Automated Newsletter:https://www.automate.org/automation/automated-newsletter Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    44 min
  • Daniel Rausch on How Alexa Was Rebuilt for the AI Era
    Jun 3 2026

    Alexa is entering a very different era.


    For years, voice assistants were built around rules, scripted responses, and carefully designed commands. But with the rise of large language models and generative AI, Amazon had to rethink what Alexa could be and how people might use it.


    In this episode of Automated, Brian Heater speaks with Daniel Rausch, Amazon’s Vice President of Alexa and Echo, about Alexa+, the company’s AI-powered evolution of its voice assistant. Daniel explains why the shift from traditional voice assistance to foundational AI assistance required a full rearchitecture of the technology behind Alexa.

    The conversation explores how Alexa moved from a deterministic system to one powered by more than 70 models, why customers do not care which model is working behind the scenes, and how Amazon thinks about choosing the right AI tool for the job.


    Brian and Daniel also discuss one of the biggest questions around AI assistants: trust. Daniel explains why Alexa is designed to understand that it is AI, why it should help people prioritize human relationships, and why guardrails matter as assistants become more conversational, personal, and ambient in the home.


    They also get into the smart home, where Daniel says Alexa+ is changing how people interact with connected devices. Instead of needing to know the right command or app, people can speak naturally, whether they are unlocking a door, checking a Ring camera, controlling lights, or asking for help while cooking.


    The conversation also covers Echo hardware, privacy controls, personality styles, language and dialect differences, AI’s impact on robotics, and why Daniel sees Amazon as an invention machine at a moment when AI is moving faster than ever.


    Connect with Daniel Rausch

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielrausch


    Learn more about Alexa+

    https://www.amazon.com/alexaplus/dp/B0CXRRF584


    Learn more about Amazon Echo devices

    https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=210779651011


    We’d love to hear from you.

    Have thoughts or guest suggestions?

    Reach us at podcast@automate.org


    You can find the transcript and more episodes of Automated at automated.fm


    Unlock full access to Automated and explore everything automation.

    Subscribe today and leave a review on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.


    You can also find us on:

    LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/automated-podcast-by-a3/

    Instagram https://www.instagram.com/automatedpod/


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    49 min
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