The move is similar to Amazon's previous hiring of the founders of AI startup Adept, a strategy described as a "reverse acquihire" where tech giants use hiring and licensing deals to gain new talent and technology without fully acquiring a startup. Covariant will continue to operate under the leadership of Ted Stinson and Tianhao Zhang, with a focus on delivering the Covariant Brain into production environments across various global industries.
Key takeaways:
- Amazon has hired the founders of Covariant and about a quarter of the startup's employees, and has also signed a non-exclusive license to use Covariant’s robotic foundation models.
- Covariant is building AI models for robots, with an initial focus on robotic arms performing common warehouse tasks.
- The deal is similar to Amazon's hiring of the founders of AI startup Adept, an approach described as a 'reverse acquihire' where tech giants use hiring and licensing deals to disguise acquisitions.
- Covariant will continue operating under the leadership of Ted Stinson and Tianhao Zhang, with a focus on delivering the Covariant Brain into production environments across various global industries.