The next member of your building staff might be a robot: Cobalt Robotics
When COVID tests your mettle, bring on the metal
Welcome to Issue #4 ofย(un)real estate. Each issue I will shine a spotlight on one startup and how it is helping real estate operators succeed in these trying times. If you enjoy this newsletter, please share it with others.
Asset Type: office, industrial, museums, hospitals
The Need: In order to make building occupants feel comfortable and safe upon re-opening, building owners are considering multiple methods for screening the health of individuals as they enter and for enforcing social distancing in common spaces. The conventional options for enforcing health security are much like those for physical securityโnamely, humans or cameras, each with their respective pros and cons. Humans have the benefit of being friendly and responsive, but are expensive, and cameras have the benefit of being cost-effective and consistently aware, but are unable to react to situations as they occur. However, there is a third option that could be the best of both worldsโฆ
Robots. At a time when our industry would like to be cutting costs and improving operational efficiency, throwing people at the problem (i.e. hiring more staff to assist with screening) or investing in installing single-purpose, static thermal cameras for taking temperatures might not be the answer. Robots bridge the gap in the market, costing a fraction of a human worker and having far greater flexibility and functionality than static infrastructure such as cameras. Moreover, robots amplify the reach and effectiveness of your existing team, who canโt be in all places at all times.
Todayโs startup was founded to create service robots that dramatically improve the quality of life for everyone and fundamentally redefine the modern workplaceโฆ
Spotlight
Company: Cobalt Robotics
Funding Stage: Post Series B |ย Traction: Office customers include Slack and Yelp
Description: Cobalt Robotics is a robotics company designed to enhance the operational effectiveness of buildings. Theyโve created a comprehensive system that pairs autonomous indoor robots with highly-trained, remote specialists who can function as both customer service and physical security responders. Most of the time, Cobalt patrols autonomously, detecting people, dodging obstacles, and flagging anomalies on the fly. But if it spots something unusual, it alerts a remote operator. When this occurs, an operator can appear on the screen of the robot to initiate a video chat with a visitor or employee โ a true human-to-human interaction at a comfortable social distance.
Originally designed to assist with physical security and facilities management, the robot has gotten smarter and more capable over time with software updates. Cobalt now offers the ability to conduct temperature screenings with its built-in thermal camera.
Pro tip: The Cobalt robot can also be used to monitor for social distancing best practices.
Other companies in the space include: Knightscope security and Otsaw Digital.
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Have a spectacular week,
David