Following the disbanding and reinstating of OpenAI’s robotics division over the previous years and reviews of OpenAI constructing its personal robotic, a sequence of latest job listings on the robotics group counsel the corporate is lastly able to leap into {hardware}.
Final Friday, Caitlin Kalinowski, who joined OpenAI in November to guide the robotics and shopper {hardware} group, shared the primary OpenAI Robotics {hardware} roles by way of an X publish. These job postings embrace an EE Sensing Engineer, Robotics Mechanical Design Engineer, and TPM Supervisor.
Actually excited to be posting our FIRST Robotics {hardware} roles for @OpenAI, together with two very senior tech lead engineering (IC) roles and a TPM Supervisor.
The primary function is for an **EE Sensing Engineer** to assist us design the sensor suite for our robots.
The second function is for a…— Caitlin Kalinowski 🇺🇸 (@kalinowski007) January 10, 2025
Clicking hyperlinks to the roles yields an outline of a Robotics group that’s “targeted on unlocking general-purpose robotics and pushing in direction of AGI-level intelligence in dynamic, real-world setting.” The outline additionally describes the group’s goal to convey robotic methods from prototype to full-scale manufacturing.
Many customers are expressing unease about OpenAI delving into the robotics area. Nonetheless, when one consumer commented, “The considered OpenAI with {hardware}😬”, Kalinowski tried to diffuse considerations, citing the advantages as a substitute.
“Yeah, I can not wait!” replied Kalinowski. “Think about with the ability to ship a robotic to do a job that is actually harmful for a human.”
Till now, OpenAI has developed its AI fashions to streamline workflows, with the subsequent logical step being integration into bodily units to reinforce consumer help. Nonetheless, following examples like Elon Musk’s Tesla, which introduced the Optimus humanoid robotic in 2021 however has but to launch it, a market-ready robotic should still be years away.
Robotics may imply issues exterior of humanoid robots, together with much less flashy robots — equivalent to robotic vacuums — that assist accomplish on a regular basis capabilities. Furthermore, when requested within the feedback if the main focus could be humanoid robots, Kalinowski mentioned that’s but to be decided, with the preliminary group defining and constructing the roadmap.
