In this episode of Machine Minds, we dive into one of the most overlooked choke points in logistics: the loading dock. Chris Smith, founder and CEO of Slip Robotics, joins Greg to unpack why loading and unloading trucks remains one of the most manual, time-consuming processes in modern supply chains—and how Slip is transforming it with autonomous, high-payload mobile robots.

In this episode of Machine Minds, we look at how physical intelligence—the fusion of robotics, automation, and software—can reshape one of society’s most strained systems: healthcare. Director of Software Engineering Nicholas Kirsch joins Greg to break down why hospital pharmacies are essentially “mini warehouses,” how automation is already quietly at work behind the scenes, and what it will take to reach the vision of a fully autonomous pharmacy.

In this episode of Machine Minds, we explore what it really takes to build the human infrastructure behind the coming wave of robots. CEO and co-founder Richard Petrazzini joins Greg to unpack how “robotic workforce enablement” can make or break uptime, customer trust, and the long-term success of robotics deployments—especially as robots leave cages, connect to the cloud, and move into human environments.

In this episode of Machine Minds, we look at what really happens when hardware innovation meets business strategy in robotics. Director of Business Development Milt Walker joins Greg to unpack how manufacturers, startups, and ecosystem players can scale robotics responsibly—without getting stuck in proof-of-concept purgatory or pretending they’re “just” software companies. From functional safety to workforce gaps and reshoring, Milt explores the forces reshaping how robots get built, deployed, and trusted in the real world.

What does it take to guide a robotics startup from a napkin sketch to a $775 million exit? Oliver Mitchell, a venture capital partner at FF Venture Capital and author of "A Startup Field Guide in the Age of Robotics and AI" returns to Machine Minds to share hard-won lessons from the trenches of deep tech investing. From the dramatic rise and fall of Webvan to the triumph of Kiva Systems (now Amazon Robotics), Oliver reveals why product-market fit isn't found in the lab - it's discovered in relentless customer conversations. We explore the pivotal mistakes founders make, why pivoting isn't failure but strategy, and how the right cap table can be the difference between scaling and stalling out.

Construction is one of the world’s most complex, risk-filled, and operationally fragmented industries — and also one of the last to benefit from automation. At Raise Robotics, CTO Rishabh Aggarwal is helping change that.

From capturing diesel soot to turn into ink, to designing CubeSats at NASA, to building autonomous harvesting robots in ag-tech, Rishabh’s journey has always been about one thing: building real technology that solves real problems.