Photo Credit: Carnegie Mellon University
Some call it Roboburgh. Some call it Robotics Row. We call it the world’s largest robotics capital, and the intersection of the world’s best robotics talent. Pittsburgh robotics companies include the world’s biggest names in the industry, like Astrobotic, Aurora, Caterpillar, Seegrid and Smith+Nephew.
In 1989, Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) founded the world’s first doctoral program in robotics. Since then, more than 100 organizations continue to shape the robotics industry and develop some of the world’s largest commercial centers for autonomous mobile robots leading to Pittsburgh being known as the robotics capital of the world.
Pittsburgh is home to Carnegie Mellon University: an international leader in world-class robotics research and education, and computer science.
Robotics Masters & PhD alumni
SF robotics facilities
AI undergrad program
Faculty Members
AI grad degree program in the U.S.
Annual computer & information science R&D expenditures. (2019) 2nd highest in the U.S.
IT patents awarded for innovation, including in robotics (2018)
academic & private research centers
operates within the CMU Robotics Institute, partners with government and industry clients to develop and commercialize robotic systems solutions while educating K-12 and college students through the Robotics Academy.
a public/private partnership and leading national collaborative in automation and robotics technology and education won a 2020 RBR50 Robotics Innovation award.
of the University of Pittsburgh, improves the mobility and function of people with disabilities through engineering in clinical research and medical rehabilitation.
Universities & post-secondary CTE institutions
Annual grads in tech-related fields; 2,000+ grads annually with a master’s degree or higher.
increase in the tech talent pool since 2013
Computer programmers, developers, and administrators; average wages of $83,000*
Electrical engineers; average wage of $97,300*
Mechanical Engineers; average wage of $90,910*
*Employee numbers and average wages in Robotics-related positions based on 2018 data.
Robust support from accelerators, educational organizations & ecosystem leaders
VC & PE investment in regional robotics since 2012
Organizations support the Pittsburgh robotics ecosystem, spearheaded by the Pittsburgh Robotics Network, founded in 2018 by leading local companies with the mission of accelerating robotics and artificial intelligence adoption, and connecting Pittsburgh with worldwide robotics communities.
Startup Genome, a global leader in ecosystem research, spotlights the Pittsburgh startup ecosystem as part of its network of 290+ ecosystems worldwide. Pittsburgh is ranked #31 in the top emerging ecosystems globally, with its advanced manufacturing/robotics, life sciences and space tech sectors recognized. Pittsburgh has also notably experienced 42.6% growth in ecosystem value, per Startup Genome.
Founded by CMU in 2017 and received $250M in funding to establish itself as an independent nonprofit to lead robotics innovation and expertise to accelerate growth in Pittsburgh.
Self-driving vehicle company – formerly Delphi Automotive PLC – with a local team of 200 employees focusing on the software and hardware of the company’s autonomous vehicles. Recently announced a $4B partnership with Hyundai Motor Group.
70-person artificial intelligence company raised $93M in Series B funding with plans to expand its team to 200 employees and build an internal sales and marketing team.
Amazon and its cloud platform Amazon Web Services (AWS) are no strangers to enhancing AI applications and algorithms. Amazon opened a tech office in 2017 and plans to expand their workforce to 100 employees with a focus on Alexa voice technology/speech recognition and machine learning.
Self-driving car startup – founded by Google and Tesla alumni – that has raised more than $530M in funding, partnered with Hyundai and Fiat Chrysler, and recently expanded into Texas to accelerate the development of self-driving trucks.
Two of Carnegie Mellon’s top AI + robotics researchers now lead one of social media’s newest AI labs in Pittsburgh on the university’s campus.
Partnered with Carnegie Mellon University to launch the Bosch Center for Artificial Intelligence (BCAI) Research Lab. Plans to build a team of up to 20 AI experts and invest $8M+ in CMU research through 2023.
Oregon-based company that develops robots that work alongside people in warehouses to expedite workflows expands in Pittsburgh in a former 45,000 SF warehouse building. The expansion comes on the heels of the company receiving an $8 million venture funding round.
Developer and operator of wall-climbing, infrastructure inspecting robots. Relocated in Pittsburgh in 2015 and landed $40M in funding to build out its safety and infrastructure monitoring services. Plans to hire 120 new employees.
Warehouse robotics startup spun out of CMU announced plans to expand in the Strip District, moving into a 30,000 SF facility – five times larger than its current space – with a headquarter offices, a showcase center and manufacturing space.
Speech-to-text startup raised $8M in Series B funding, moved to an 11,000 SF facility in the Strip District and doubled its staff in 2019. Recently acquired for $59M by Medallia.
U.S. Army established its Artificial Intelligence (AI) Task Force at Carnegie Mellon University; the task force consists of 20 people between Pittsburgh and D.C.
The first teacher-friendly K-12 AI education startup launched in Pittsburgh in 2019. Owned and operated by Andrew Chen and WholeRen, another Pittsburgh-based education company.
Trucking tech platform that combines autonomy and driver augmentation. Its technology will allow a person to drive a lead truck while a follower truck operates in tandem autonomously.
Washington state-based industrial company set up an AI and data analytics center, also known as “The Fort,” in Pittsburgh after purchasing Industrial Scientific earlier in 2017.
Lawrenceville-based Edge Case Research announces seed round of $7 million in investment funding towards an intelligent safety assessment platform for autonomous vehicle software that operates at the speed of modern machine learning development.
Honeywell announced the spinout in 2019 with plans to establish an advanced technology center of excellence focused on robotics and AI development in Pittsburgh. Leased a 25,000 SF space in the Strip District with plans to hire engineers and designers.
Lunar tech company that went from unfamiliar to globally realized after landing a $200M contract to deliver a NASA moon rover in 2023. They’re now investing $6.5M to relocate to 47,000 SF building on the North Shore and creating 95 new jobs.
Leader in self-driving industrial vehicles raised $25 million in a round of equity funding. Expanded its teams by nearly 40% in 2020 with plans to continue to grow.
Pittsburgh-based legal service AI startup will double its office space to nearly 3,500 SF by 2022 to accommodate its growing team.
Japan-based automotive components manufacturer announced the opening of its Pittsburgh Innovation Lab, which will focus on autonomous driving research and AI development. The facility will be located in Pittsburgh’s Robotics Row alongside other cutting-edge companies.
Formed as a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv, Motional aims to commercialize an autonomous platform for use in autonomous vehicle fleet operations and by automotive manufacturers. The company is valued at $4 billion.
Developer and manufacturer of advanced mobile robotic systems, RE2 Robotics announced an expansion of its HQ in Pittsburgh, increasing its total space to 30,000 SF. The company plans to invest over $1 million in its production capabilities, including buying new machinery.
*Sarcos announced closure of its Pittsburgh offices in November 2023.
Google’s former self-driving car project, Waymo, is expanding its presence in the eastern U.S. They will co-locate in Google’s space in Bakery Square and expect to hire about 20 engineers by year end.
A spinoff of Carnegie Robotics, Thoro.ai aims to commercialize its Autonomous Mobile Robotics technology for the cleaning and disinfection equipment industry. The autonomous robots are deployed at the Pittsburgh International Airport cleaning the floors in an ultra-efficient manner.
Search engine Google announced the expansion of its Pittsburgh offices in Bakery Square, putting its total footprint at 320,000 SF. Pittsburgh is host to 800 Google employees that are developing its AI solutions and advancing research in natural language processing, machine learning, image and video understanding and more.
French tire manufacturer Michelin acquired Pittsburgh-based RoadBotics Inc. to expand its North American presence and strengthen its expertise in AI technology. Michelin DDI will now be able to combine knowledge of tire/vehicle uses, driving behavior analysis, and computer vision expertise to support smarter and safer mobility.
Mapless AI is bringing its tech to Pittsburgh International Airport and testing an autonomous car-hailing service through the Allegheny County Airport Authority’s xBridge program, which brings early-stage tech companies to the region to conduct use cases in real time at the airport.
A new autonomous trucking business backed by SoftBank Group Corp., the company seeks to leverage its self-driving technology to improve efficiency and enhance safety in the trucking industry while also tackling supply chain challenges.
to start a robotics company (Robotics Business Review) with 100+ existing companies spanning 18 industry verticals.
have led to 2,673 jobs impacted, totaling 4,670 estimated employment in the industry. (2014 – 2019)
London-based medical tech company Smith+Nephew located the R&D headquarters of its robotics business to “Robotics Row” in Pittsburgh’s Strip District.
The 165-year-old company first came to Pittsburgh in 2016, and it has tripled the initial staff it employed here since then, now at more than 180 local full-time workers. It focuses on medical training and surgical robotic platforms
Relocating HQ and opening a Showcase Innovation Center in a 30,000-SF facility in Robotics Row to feature the company’s e-commerce order fulfillment robots.
