Brenton Welford | Tuesday | 3.30pm | ARC Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science

Lessons from commercialising autonomous robots in heavy industry

Brenton Welford

- SafeAI

Tuesday 22 November, 3.30pm

Abstract

Scientists engage in fundamental research not only to satisfy their intellectual curiosity, but also for the ultimate betterment of humankind. The base technological output of fundamental research, in isolation, is usually unable to do this. We need to put it to work addressing some specific problem, or increase some good.

Technological solutions purport to make our lives better by successfully addressing specific problems; as measured by the maximisation of some value (often financial). But how can we know at the outset which are the optimal problems to solve? And which are the most numerous? (ie: In which market can our solution maximize value?)

And secondly, which is the most accessible of these markets? Will the uptake of this solution keep pace to support its implementation? (Will our time-to-scale outrun our burn rate?).

This brief talk will casually address some of these questions, by sharing some anecdotes from attempts to commercialize autonomous robots across a variety of markets in heavy industry.

About the speaker

I'm passionate about collaborating with founders and teams who are developing technology that makes a difference, and with the enthusiasm and grit to get this technology to market.

I help set the roadmap to commercialization by facilitating an understanding of the market and value proposition; developing a go-to-market strategy, getting customer traction & pipeline, and campaigning to raise capital.

My own experience has focused on commercializing automated robots in industrial markets in Australia, USA, Israel, Chile, and Singapore.