Swiss robotics asserts itself in the AI context

(CONNECT) The Zurich Robotics & AI Founders Summit brought founders together with potential investors and other experts. The selected 200 or so experts discussed the Technopark Zurich trends and applications in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). There was a particular focus on robotics solutions that work with AI and on how AI is further strengthening Switzerland as a robotics location. The conference was part of the Zurich AI Festival and was organized by Amazon Web Services (AWS), the Swiss ICT Investors Club (SICTIC) and the AI Startup Center at Technopark Zurich. 

Leandro von Werra, Head of Research at open source AI pioneer Hugging Face in Bern, provided an introduction to the subject. Hugging Face plays a special role in the development of open AI models and operates a community platform on which models, data sets and training pipelines are shared and improved. "Never bet against data," said von Werra, pointing out that decisive advances in AI in recent years have been made possible less by new model architectures than by the development of high-quality data sets. Specialized, smaller models that can be efficiently trained for specific fields of application are particularly important for robotics.

Investors explained on stage which criteria arouse their interest. Among them is Ellipsis investor Robert MacKenzie, known in the scene as the former CTO of ANYbotics. The four-legged robot from the spin-off of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich(ETH) sets standards. Among other things, he emphasized the importance of privileged data access. According to Investment Director Klea Wenger, Swisscom Ventures attaches particular importance to strong teams that focus on a clearly defined area. Redalpine representative Philip Kneis said: "There has never been a better time to promote a deep-tech start-up in Switzerland, in Zurich." The connection between industry and excellent universities acts as a driving force. 

However, the hurdles for start-ups often lie in their focus on the technical solution, said Daniel Naeff from the ETH AI Center during a panel discussion. The elementary industrial side is sometimes neglected. Mara Elsa Montoya from the Zurich-based strategy company MNTY brought the ethical component into the debate. "We need to discuss more about how we envision the future of work" and referred to the role of AI in society.

A panel led by AI Startup Center Director Christian Hoffmann focused on the perspective of founders such as Maria Stamatopoulou from Lealaps. Your team has relocated from London to Zurich. She emphasized that the talent pool and the proximity to the industry were decisive factors. Finally, the investors were able to get to know the founders and their solutions at start-up pitches. This is how fluidbot from Gossau SG presented itself: Its robotic solution aims to find leaks in drinking water pipes before they become a problem. ce/yvh