AUSTIN, Texas — We’re in the middle of a great resignation, and some employers are struggling to fill roles. One tech company in Austin is aiming to fill those gaps.
Apptronik is behind some of the first mass-produced robots that are entering the workforce.
“These robots will really help out in the supply chain,” said Jeff Cardenas who co-founded Apptronik in 2016. “One of the things that’s clear for us is that the needs of the supply chain are greatly outpacing that of our human capital.”
Cardenas says each one fills a job that humans don’t want to do.
As labor shortages are expected to continue across the country, Cardenas knows some people might have hesitations about robots in the workforce.
“I think people had the same fears when computers were coming out, that they do about robots taking jobs, but what we’ve seen in computers is that it’s really man and machine that’s powerful, not man versus machine,” said Cardenas.
While some of the robots we see today are specialized for certain jobs, he says in the next 10 years, general purpose robots could be your next coworker.
Every movement that the robot makes is being controlled by someone behind the scenes.
“Why is that interesting? Because imagine the future of work where you don’t have to be physically present to get your job done,” said Cardenas.
He says it’s an opportunity for robots and humans to work together.
“The idea behind these kinds of machines is that we can pair them with humans, so the robots can do things that they’re good at and humans can do things that they’re good at, and like doing much better,” said Cardenas.